Harry Potter EU, The Philosopher's Stones
by LightLink17
Summary: Harry Potter was just a normal boy, living a fairly normal life. Until one day a giant of a man tells young Harry, his sister Violet, and cousin Dudley, that they're anything but normal.
1. Dudley's Letter

As a little bit more explanation from my summary, I'll say that this is a fic that wonders what the wizarding world would be like if the wizarding genes were always more common. If Muggleborns happened more often, and Squibs less so. Meaning there's always been many more Wizards in the world, who might have been Muggles, or never even born in Canon. So expect a ton of OC's, and a different History that's led to a slightly different Wizarding World.

And I don't own Harry Potter. I'm sure we all know that. I do take ownership over my OC's though. But if you want them, feel free to ask.

* * *

Harry Potter woke up to the sound of loud knocking on his door. A shrill voice followed.

"Get up! Up! Now!"

The knocking continued, getting louder with each thunk. It was his Aunt Petunia.

"Up!" she said. "Your sister's already out of bed, and if I come back and you're still not up–" She was interrupted by a clattering in the kitchen.

Harry heard her footsteps disappear towards the kitchen. Taking his time, he got up and pulled on the same pair of socks he had worn the day before.

When he was finished dressing, he went down the hall and into the kitchen. He probably should have waited.

"Hurry up and finish!" screeched Aunt Petunia.

"I'm trying!" said Violet.

Violet was Harry's sister. She was a little less than a year younger than him, but she was always there for him. Maybe it was because his aunt, uncle and cousin were not the best people, but he and Violet were rather close…as close as siblings could be, anyway.

"You! Help her," Petunia said. "See that you don't drop anything again. And don't burn anything either!"

"We won't," Harry said.

Harry and Violet were always the ones to cook. Usually, Violet would be asked to do it all, but the Dursleys seemed to think that if she dropped something or messed up in some other way, that Harry and Violet could manage to redo it without making the same mistake. It usually worked, as they were able to catch each other before somebody burned the eggs or dropped a pan. Sometimes, however, they would get in each other's way and make things worse.

Recently, they were also required to make increasingly larger breakfasts. Dudley's birthday was coming up soon, and the Dursleys liked to give him bigger and better meals until his "special day," which usually consisted of several feasts, a ridiculous amount of presents, and a trip to some place fun that Harry and Violet where never allowed to go on.

From the moment Dudley walked into the kitchen, he was whining to his mother. Dudley liked to whine. From an early age he had figured out that all he had to do was sound like he was about to cry, and his mother and father would give him anything he wanted.

"But, Mum! I want a racing bike!"

"We'll see, darling," Aunt Petunia said.

"That's my boy! Wants his fair share of presents. And not just things he can sit down and do – oh, no! He needs something to keep him active. He's a growing boy!" Uncle Vernon said as he beamed at his son.

Harry did not know why Dudley wanted a racing bike. He never liked to exercise, unless you counted using Harry as a punching bag. Dudley and his gang at school always loved to pound on Harry – if they could catch him, that is. Harry did not look like much, but he was actually very fast.

Physically, Harry was very small and skinny. He looked all the worse for it because he always had to wear Dudley's old clothes, which were grossly oversized on account of Dudley being so obese. Other than being small, Harry had a thin face, knobbly knees, black hair that was always messy, and bright green eyes. He had to wear glasses held together with scotch tape because of all the times Dudley had punched him in the nose. The only thing Harry liked about his appearance was a lighting-bolt shaped scar on his forehead. He had had it for as long as he could remember, and the first question he could remember asking was how he got it. His Aunt Petunia had replied, "In the car crash that killed your parents." Then she added, "And don't ask questions."

Violet looked rather different from Harry. She had dark red hair that was also untamed, but nowhere near as bad as Harry's. She shared Harry's almond shaped eyes (which Harry thought looked better on her anyway), but hers were very bright hazel instead of Harry's green. Violet was also smaller and skinnier than Harry, a fact that was also exaggerated since she too, had to wear old hand-me-downs from Dudley. Harry wasn't sure if it was because she had to live in the cupboard under the stairs (which was much smaller than Harry's broom cupboard), or if it was just genetic. Maybe one of their parents were very small. But however their parents looked, Harry thought Violet had gotten the better end of the deal as far as looks went.

Harry, Violet, and the Dursleys were finally all sitting and eating breakfast. Just then, they heard the click of the mail slot.

"Go get the mail, Dudley," Vernon said.

"Make Harry get it."

"Go get the mail, Harry."

"Make Violet get it."

"Just get the mail!" Vernon roared.

"Fine, fine! I'll get it!" said Violet, as she got up to leave.

When she came back she flopped a few letters into Uncle Vernon's lap, and then turned to Dudley.

"You got this," she said, before throwing a letter at him. It did not quite make it and landed in his eggs. "I don't know who would write to _you,_" she said under her breath. It seemed that no one but Harry had heard it and he had to stifle a chuckle.

"That's my boy! Probably some prestigious school trying to get him enrolled!" Uncle Vernon said. "Sorry, but we'll just have to tell them 'No.' You're going to Smeltings, Dudley. Fine school, very fine."

Just as Dudley was about to open his letter, Aunt Petunia shouted as if the world had caught fire.

"STOP!" she screamed.

"What'd I do?" asked Dudley.

"Give me that letter for a minute, Sweetums."

"But, it's mine."

"Just give it to me!"

Dudley handed the letter over.

One glance was all it took. "Vernon…." she said.

"What is it?" he asked.

"OUT! Everybody out! Dudley, go to your room now! Harry, Violet–cupboards! NOW!"

"Now, now…I'm sure it's–"

"NO! Out!"

"But I want my–" Dudley began.

"OUT!"

Petunia stood up, walked over, and grabbed Harry and Violet by the ear, dragging them out of the kitchen. She then shoved Dudley (how she managed it, Harry never knew) out with them and slammed the door.

The three children started fighting over who would listen through the keyhole, but Dudley won easily. Violet and Harry had to lie on their stomachs and listen through the crack at the bottom of the door.

"What do we do Vernon?" Aunt Petunia sounded as if she was in tears.

"There, mu-must be some mistake…maybe if we just write them and tell them–"

"There is no mistake!" Aunt Petunia was really crying now. "He's…he's just as _abnormal_ as the other two! We can't let him go, Vernon!"

"No. It can't be true. Not our son!"

"Oh, this is what I get! This must be some sort of cosmic punishment! Vernon, what are we going to do?"

"He won't go. He probably won't want to go and everything will be fine. We'll just tell the freak that shows up tomorrow that he isn't going. And we won't tell him. Everything will be fine. You'll see." Vernon sounded as if he was really straining to keep from crying himself. Harry did not understand it; they were _never_ this upset with Dudley.

"We'll probably have to do something about…the other two. They know where Dudley sleeps. They'll know where the other two do too. We can't have any trouble Petunia."

Harry and Violet looked over to Dudley, whose face was still squished into the keyhole. He slowly turned his head towards them, eyes bulging.

That evening after work, Uncle Vernon did something he never did – visit Harry at his cupboard. Even stranger, when Harry opened his door, there was Violet standing with him, with all of her stuff in her arms. It was not difficult for her. She had just as much as he did – not a lot.

"Look, you two. Your aunt and I think that you've outgrown these cupboards. We've decided to move both of you into Dudley's spare room."

Violet looked shocked. "_Both_ of us? Aren't we a little old to be–"

"Silence!" Vernon yelled. "Er…well, we don't have enough room otherwise. We need to keep a spare room open. And don't complain about the size, you should be happy you're leaving your cupboards!"

"Why are we moving now?" Harry asked.

"Don't ask questions! Just take your stuff up there now!"

The Dursleys had four bedrooms: one for Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia, one for guests (usually Vernon's sister Marge), one for Dudley, and one for Dudley's things. When Harry and Violet went up to the last of the four rooms, they realised a problem – there was only one bed.

"What…are we supposed to sleep in the same bed?" Violet asked.

"I…guess," Harry said. "I don't think they thought this through at all."

"No. Didn't you hear? They only did this because they're afraid somebody's watching. I saw that letter. It had Dudley's bedroom on it! They're afraid that whoever sent it may know how badly we're treated."

"Well, now they know we have to share such a small room. We don't have to share a bed. I can sleep on the floor."

"Don't be silly, Harry. We aren't _that_ old. Maybe in a year or two, if they still haven't gotten another bed in here by then."

After they got their things settled, they started looking around. The room was littered with things Dudley never used, or had broken. There was Dudley's old television set, which he put his foot through when his favourite show had been cancelled. There was an old tank that Dudley once used to run over the neighbour's dog, and an old birdcage that once held a parrot. But Dudley had traded it for a real air rifle, which was laying in a corner all bent out of shape because he had sat on it. The only things in the room that were not broken were a shelf full of books, which looked as if they had never been touched.

Suddenly they heard Dudley whining to his mother from downstairs.

"I don't _want_ them in there…I _need_ that room…make them get out."

Harry sighed and sat down next to his sister. He couldn't say he was completely unhappy with this arrangement. It was better than his cupboard, and he was sure it was better than Violet's. He got up and walked to the other side of the bed and lay down. Violet soon joined him, and before he knew it, he was asleep.

Harry was awoken by the sounds of Violet tripping over something. It was pitch black.

"Ow! Stupid birdcage!" she said.

"What are you doing?" Harry whispered.

"It's Dudley and Aunt Petunia. They're arguing over something."

Harry got up and joined Violet at the door, trying as hard as he could to listen to what was going on.

"Why won't you _tell_ me?" Dudley wailed.

"It was addressed to you by mistake. It's nothing. Just go back to bed, Sweetums," Aunt Petunia said in a strained yet sweet voice.

"But, Mum! It had my room on it! Who was writing to me? And why were you and Dad so angry at me?"

"Oh, we weren't _angry_. It's nothing, Dudders."

"_Mum_!"

"It's nothing!" Aunt Petunia's patience seemed to have finally snapped. "Just….go back to bed, please."

Harry heard footsteps going back towards Dudley's room.

"What do you think it is?" Harry asked Violet, his eyes finally adjusting to the darkness.

"I don't know. Whatever it is, it involves us and our supposed _abnormality._" She practically spat out the last word. "You know how they are, always punishing one of us because we're _freaks_, or for not keeping our _freakiness_ to ourselves. Whatever freakiness they were talking about, apparently Dudley has it too."

"What could it be? There's nothing…wrong with us. They're just using that to be mean."

"Maybe that letter was from Dudley's real parents? Maybe he was switched at birth! It would make sense wouldn't it?"

"I don't know. He looks so much like them…."

"All the more reason that it could have happened. Maybe that letter was from his real parents telling him there was a mix up, and they want him to live with them? It all fits!"

"I don't think so."

Violet looked like she was going to start yelling. "All right, what do _you_ think?" She asked as she crossed her arms and started tapping her foot.

"I don't know. Maybe it _is_ nothing. Let's just go back to bed. I'm tired."

"Ugh. Boys! Always hungry or tired," she said with a hint of a smile. "Fine."

Making her way to her side of the bed she said, "Good night, Harry."

"Good night, Vi."

The next morning started off rather uneventfully. Violet and Harry were both woken up at the same time, and Violet, as always, was expected to make breakfast. They were getting ready to eat when there was a knock on the door….

* * *

A/N

Welcome to my first (well, technically Second but let's not count the Fiasco that was the first) attempt at a novel length Harry Potter Fanfic. This will span all seven years, hopefully. I'll never start a new year without finishing it, but if Life gets too annoying, I may simply take a break by not starting a year. At this exact moment however, one won't have to worry about that until Year Three. I somehow doubt that my life will get so demanding that I couldn't finish all seven though, so I wouldn't really worry about it. Further, for this year at least, expect regular weekly updates. Once a week I'll update, probably every Sunday until it is all done.

Oh, and do leave a review. It's always nice.

* * *


	2. Professor Hagrid

Vernon and Petunia looked at each other nervously. Neither of them moved.

There was another knock on the door, this one a bit more forceful. Uncle Vernon stood up and started carefully stepping towards the door. After he had achieved what he thought a "safe" distance he started yelling.

"Go away! He's not going. You just – just walk away! Or I'll call the authorities!"

Harry heard some rustling from behind the door. He looked over at Violet, who looked as confused as he was. It was then that Harry heard the doorknob turn, which was odd, as he knew it should have been locked.

Harry was not quite prepared for who walked through the doorstep. His conversation with Violet the night before had made him expect a husband and wife, or perhaps a social worker of some kind. He would have even expected a talking dog over what he got.

Currently ducking to get through the doorway and tucking a long stick into his coat was an absolute giant of a man. Harry would not have believed they made people that big, if he had not seen it with himself. Just then Harry heard a thunk to his side and noticed that Violet had literally fallen out of her chair. Harry was not sure if he should chuckle or join her as she gave a muffled "ouch" and pulled herself back up.

The enormous man closed the door behind him and was moving his head around as if looking for something. Turning to a purple-coloured Vernon, he said, "Well? Where are they?"

Vernon did not say anything. It seemed like he had lost the ability to speak. Violet however, had not.

"Where are 'who?'" she asked, still a bit startled.

The giant man jerked at the noise, as if he had not noticed there was a kitchen right across from where he was standing.

"Violet? Is that you? Merlin, I haven' seen you since you were two months old!" The giant seemed to have lost himself for a moment. "And Harry? You look just like your dad did at that age."

Harry just sat there, unaware of what to do. The huge man seemed to have noticed the uneasiness and stood up a bit straighter.

"Sorry," he said, "I haven't introduced myself. I'm Professor Rubeus Hagrid. I teach Care of Magical Creatures, and am also Keeper of the Keys, and Grounds, at Hogwarts."

"Don't mention that place here!" snapped Aunt Petunia. Harry had forgotten she was even there.

"An' why should I do that?" said the giant, looking a bit annoyed.

"None of them are going. They're all going to stay here!" Petunia stood up so fiercely during this outburst she knocked her chair over.

"I don't think that's such a good idea. Magical kids got to learn something about controlling their magic, or…well, who knows what'll happen! Your son could start blowin' things up! Nah, since you're Muggles yourselves, you should definitely send him to Hogwarts. And as for those two," he said as he gestured to where Harry and Violet were sitting, "You can't stop them."

Harry had figured it out. He was dreaming. This was some sort of strange dream.

"Did you say magic?" asked Violet.

"Of course. Got Dudley's letter right here with me. Dumbledore heard he hadn't gotten his last one. Have yours too as a matter of fact, Harry. You shouldn't have gotten it for a little longer, but Dumbledore didn't see the harm in letting you get it a little early, seeing as I'm here and all."

"Er – I'm afraid that doesn't make any sense to me," Harry said.

"Eh?" said Professor Hagrid. "What do you mean it don't make sense? Surely you know all about Hogwarts."

"No, we don't." This time it was Violet who spoke up. "So, why don't you explain it to us? Because right now, you kind of sound like a madman."

The giant turned to the Dursleys, now standing together across from him. He looked like he was about to break something.

"What's the meaning o' this!" he roared."You tellin' me these kids don' know anything about…anything? Just what are you two playin' at? Dumbledore left you a letter! I saw him! Why didn't you tell them?"

"Tell us what!" said Violet, clearly annoyed at having Professor Hagrid jump on the Dursleys without answering her question.

"I'll deal with you two later," the large man grumbled at the two adults. "Where's Dudley? It'll be easier to get this done all at once."

"You're not getting anywhere near him," yelled Uncle Vernon. His face now resembled a very large grape. "He's our son, we decide what's best for him!"

"Oh really now?" The professor now held the long stick Harry saw him stuff into his coat earlier, and was pointing it at Uncle Vernon. "And I suppose yer gonna stop me, eh? Nope, he's goin' to Hogwarts, and yeh two can't stop him. So you just go get him now, or who knows what'll happen."

"Wait!" said a voice from the stairs. Harry heard some pounding footsteps coming down the stairs, and Dudley suddenly come into view and waddled to his parents.

"I'm – I'm here. Don't hu-hurt my parents." For once, Harry thought Dudley was actually about to cry.

Professor Hagrid's face instantly softened. "Nah, I wasn't going to hurt them! They just weren't cooperating with something that needs cooperation. Now, Dudley, if yeh'll go join Harry and Violet at the table." He gestured towards the kitchen door, and started to walk in himself, ducking as he did so. Dudley stayed where he was, but looked curious.

"Now, let's see," said the professor. He walked over towards the stove and tapped it with the stick he was still holding. Harry was surprised to see the fire light by itself. As Professor Hagrid started mumbling some words, cabinets started opening up and a teapot flew into his hand, which he put on the fire. After that came five cups, two of which he handed to Harry and Violet, and the other three he set on the table. After some more mumbled words and stick waving, Professor Hagrid had tea brewing on the cooker, and was looking through his coat pockets. Harry's aunt and uncle remained quiet as the giant worked.

At this time, Harry really started to scrutinize the man. He was huge, and not in a normal way. His hands were as big as dustbin lids, and his height made Harry wonder how he even got into the kitchen. His hair was black and tangled, and his face was covered in a very scraggly beard. He looked absolutely feral, yet he composed himself in a normal, friendly way that put Harry at ease.

Having found what he was looking for, Professor Hagrid pulled from his coat, strangely enough, a cage with a small black owl in it, as well as a few pieces of paper and a quill.

"What's all that for?" asked Violet.

"Oh, this?" Professor Hagrid said as he started writing on the paper. "Just sending a letter." He then opened the cage and allowed the bird to jump out onto the table. Rolling up the paper, he attached it to the owl's leg and said, "Now go straight to Dumbledore. No detours this time."

The owl hooted in what seemed to be acknowledgement, and flew out the open kitchen window.

Just then, the tea kettle whistled.

"Ah, there it is," said Professor Hagrid, "Here we go."

He filled each cup with tea and sat down next to Violet. He looked over to the Dursleys and gestured to the three empty chairs on the other side of him. Slowly, they made their way to the table.

"I didn't think I'd be the one to tell you three this. But what's done is done. Can't be helped."

"Great, so what's all this fuss over?" said Violet.

Leaning over to her, Professor Hagrid said, "You're a witch, Violet."

"I'm a what?" Violet was clearly holding back some more, less savoury comments, probably questioning the man's sanity.

"Why, a witch of course! And you two," he said as he gestured to Dudley and Harry, "You're both Wizards. You're why I'm here. Normally you see, a Ministry of Magic representative comes and brings you're letter, but since this was Harry Potter's house too, Dumbledore intervened and sent me."

"Who is Dumbledore exactly?" asked Harry.

"And what's the Ministry of Magic?" asked Violet at the same time.

"Why, Dumbledore's the current headmaster of Hogwarts. Best one it's ever seen too." He looked thoughtful for a moment, and then said, "You know, maybe I should just give you two your letters."

He pulled out two thin envelopes and handed one to Harry, and the other to Dudley.

"Ahem," said Violet, "You're ignoring me again."

"Eh? Oh, right. Sorry. The Ministry of Magic is the magical government. Basically all they do is just keep it from Muggles, non-magical folk like these two here (he pointed at Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia), that there are still wizards and witches running around."

Violet seemed satisfied with this, and started looking over at Harry's letter.

The address on the letter was very specific, down to the room Harry was staying in. Harry opened it and read:

HOGWARTS SCHOOL

of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY

Headmaster: ALBUS DUMBLEDORE

(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock,

Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)

Dear Mr. Potter,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.

Term begins on September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31.

Yours sincerely,

Minerva McGonagall

Deputy Headmistress

More questions exploded into Harry's head as he finished his letter. Looking over, he saw Violet holding out her hand, and he handed the letter to her slowly, wondering how she would react when she finished.

"So you see, Harry, Dudley. Yer both Wizards, granted a gift! Going to go to the finest school for witches and wizards in the world!"

"So – so, you can do magic?" It was the first time Dudley had said anything since he first came down the stairs.

"Sure can. And so will you, after you get some learning behind yeh."

"Can you show us anything?" asked Violet, already finished with the letter. Harry was impressed; she seemed completely unfazed by it.

"Well, uh – sure. If you want," said the professor.

And with that, he pulled out the stick again, gave a little wave at his cup and mumbled a bit. Harry watched as the cup slowly floated into the air, not spilling a drop of tea as it rose. Professor Hagrid lowered his wand and the cup landed back on the table.

"Cool," said Dudley. Harry had forgotten Dudley was even there. "And – and we'll be able to do that, if we go I mean?"

"Sure, sure! First year spell that was too. Should be one of your first," Professor Hagrid said as he beamed.

"Wicked," piped Violet. She suddenly grew a frown on her face. "Wait. Professor Hagrid, if–"

"Just Hagrid'll do Violet. Everybody's always called me 'Hagrid.' Even after I started teaching it's just been Hagrid, unless you're somebody like Professor McGonagall or Dumbeldore. ."

"Hagrid," said Violet, "I'm a year younger than Harry and Dudley. Doesn't that mean I'll have to wait a year before it's my turn to go to school?"

"I'm afraid so, Violet. Can't be that bad though. I'm sure you'll receive lots of owls from these two." He gestured towards Harry, and then Dudley. "Year'll pass before you know it."

"Owls?" asked Violet. "That how all wizards and witches send letters? I thought you were just barmy last time."

Hagrid chuckled at this. "No, everybody uses owls. Real smart creatures they are. A wonder Muggles don't use them."

A few moments passed. Harry was amazed. Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon had not said a thing during the entire exchange. They had a defeated look about them, as if they had lost something dear to them.

"Well, er…that about wraps everything up. Dumbledore wants me to take you two to get your school things tomorrow. You two (he gestured again at Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia) should come, so you'll know where to go for next time."

"Well, we – we can't, you see. We have – we have…things to do," said Aunt Petunia.

"Well, if so then I reckon it best if I just tell you how to get there later. As it is, it's getting pretty…pretty…." Hagrid words drifted off and then he started looking back and forth between Harry and Violet, and Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon.

"Wait a minute," said Hagrid. He sounded very stern, and was glaring right at the Dursleys. "If Harry and Violet didn't know about magic before this, then do they – do they not know about their parents? Does Harry know about…him?"

Petunia looked defiantly at Hagrid, eyes slightly teary. With one breath she whispered the word "No."

Hagrid stood up so quickly he knocked his chair down behind him and shoved the table forward a considerable distance. Violet and Dudley were no longer really sitting at the table.

"You! You two!" Hagrid roared. "These two don' know anythin' about it? It's an insult ter their parent's memory! How could yeh do this?"

He looked over apologetically at Harry and Violet. Harry noticed Dudley was listening as carefully as he ever had in his life.

"I'm sorry. I'd no idea it was this bad. I'm – I'm not sure I should be the one ter tell yeh this. But somebody's gotta."

Harry had no idea what this man was talking about, but if it was about his parents…well, the Dursleys number one rule was always "Don't ask questions" and that included questions about his parents. A sense of hope filled Harry. If this man could tell him things about his parents, how many other people out there could to? Maybe he would get to know a lot about them. At the moment, Harry knew nothing, except that they died in a car crash. At least that was what the Dursleys always said.

"Well, I guess I should start at the beginning" said Hagrid and he took a deep breath. Harry was literally on the edge of his seat, focusing on Hagrid as if he was an intensely interesting television program.

"You see, wizards are just like any other people. Most are good. But some are bad. Many years ago, there was a wizard who went as bad as one could go. His name was–"

Hagrid flinched as Violet gave him a glare.

"His name was what?" she asked.

"Well, you see, most people don't speak it. I guess I could spell it for you. That'd be okay. His name was – pay attention now 'cause I'm only gonna do this once – V-O-L-D-E-M-O-R-T. There! It's done."

"Voldemort?" said Harry, Violet and Dudley at once.

"Don't speak the name!" Hagrid yelled.

"Sorry," Hagrid continued, "It's just not done. Anyway, you see, this wizard was bad, and he was powerful too. So powerful people started following him thinking they could get a bit of his power. Many people went to his side, and there was a war. One day, about two months after you were born, Violet, he came after your parents. He was after Harry. He killed–" Hagrid tried to suppress a few sniffs and pulled a handkerchief out of his coat.

"I'm sorry – it's just so sad! He killed your parents. And he tried to kill you too, Harry. But for some reason, you lived, and his power broke. He was nowhere to be found. His followers disbanded in confusion, and peace was brought to us. You're famous for that, Harry. For surviving his Killing Curse and defeating him. Nobody's ever survived the Killing Curse before, and you just got left with a scar. After he killed your parents, I was sent to go see if you were alive. And I not only found you alive, Harry, but I found Violet too. I don't think many knew about your birth at the time, Violet. You were born while youe parents where in hiding, you see. Anyway, I got you two, and Dumbledore decided to leave you with your only living relatives. That…that about covers it."

Hagrid gave a few more sniffles and dabbed his face with his handkerchief a few more times. Harry's mind was reeling. He didn't know if he should believe this man or not. Was he really famous? He couldn't remember any of it. Did an evil wizard really kill his parents?

"He's…famous…Harry – my brother Harry, is famous?" aked Violet.

"I'm afraid so, Violet. It's one of the reasons you were left here – to keep you away from all that."

Harry looked at his sister. Her face was filled with a kind of sadness Harry had never seen before. She glanced at him then, eyes glazed with tears, and reached out and hugged him.

"Well, I best be going. It's already a bit late. I'll be by tomorrow to take you to get your things. You tell your aunt and uncle to expect me again."

Harry was not paying much attention anymore. His parents had died because of him. And he was famous for it. He was famous for something he could not even remember doing, and it was something that took his parents away. He was extremely glad just then, that he still had his sister. As annoying as she could be sometimes, she was all the close family he ever had. And she, more than anyone, would understand what he was feeling right then. He did not know what he would do without her.


	3. Diagon Alley

The rest of the day passed by in a blur. After Hagrid left, Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia reluctantly congratulated Dudley, while every so often shooting dirty looks at Harry and Violet.

Harry spent the rest of the day in his room, thinking about everything he had just learned. Strangely though, Violet was not with him. He thought it must be Aunt Petunia making her clean something or cook that kept her, but he was too preoccupied to dwell on that for long.

He was famous. Not only was he famous, he was famous to _wizards_. He, Harry, was special. He could do magic. And his parents were able to do magic. Tomorrow, he would be accompanying a giant of a man who taught at a wizard's school, to buy magical school supplies. The wonder of it all almost made Harry's head spin. Even more, his parents had not died in a car crash; they had been murdered – murdered because an evil wizard was after him.

A sudden thought occurred to Harry. Why would this Voldemort be after him? He would have to ask Hagrid tomorrow.

Harry looked at the clock next to the bed and realized that it was already past dinner. He had been thinking for hours. He did not even realize he had gotten up and was pacing the room.

Just then the door opened and Violet stormed in, a dark look on her face. Harry almost backed away in fright.

"Oh, that evil _woman_!" she said.

"What?" asked Harry.

"Haven't you wondered where I've been? Why didn't you even come downstairs? While you were up here doing who knows what, Aunt Petunia has been making me clean and cook, criticizing and yelling at me the whole way through! You'd think I killed her cat! And you! You've been up here all fine and dandy without a care in the world! Why didn't you think to come down? Maybe she could've started in on you, and taken some of the pressure off me! But no! Had to stay here, all selfish, didn't you?"

Harry was at a loss for words. Violet was often quick tempered but she was beyond that now.

Violet must have noticed his shock, because she suddenly softened."Sorry," she began. "It was just a hard day. I didn't mean to go off on you or anything. But honestly! What _were_ you doing up here by yourself?"

"Just thinking. I don't know if you forgot, but we can do magic." Harry hoped the sarcasm would lighten Violet's mood.

"Yes, I remember that. I guess, perhaps if I'd been allowed alone I might've done the same thing, now that you mention it."

She looked thoughtful for a moment.

"You know, Harry," she began, "we should've noticed this before. I mean, if you really think about it…."

"Huh? If it was so obvious, why didn't we know about it before?" Harry asked.

"Well, I mean, maybe not specifics…but we should've realized there was something different about us. Instead, we just kept blowing off the strange things that happened to us. You remember when Aunt Petunia cut all your hair off?"

"Don't remind me," Harry groaned. It was an extremely embarrassing experience for him, especially with Violet giggling at him every time she saw him that day.

"You have to admit, you did look rather funny," Violet said, stifling a giggle.

Harry gave her a glare that said, "It wasn't funny at all."

Violet waved him off and said, "Anyway, don't you remember? It all grew back the next day – exactly as it was before. And remember when Dudley got really mad that one Christmas, and the tree caught fire? They blamed it on us, but I bet it was Dudley who did it."

Harry remembered that. It had been so long ago, that the details were a bit fuzzy. As he remembered, Dudley had been disappointed that he had not gotten a set of small toy soldiers for Christmas, and had started wailing. While Aunt Petunia was trying to calm him down, the tree had caught fire. When Harry got older, he thought it was due to an electrical malfunction, but now that Violet brought it up, it made sense that it could have been magic.

"Now that I think about it, it does seem like strange things were always happening, doesn't it?" Harry said.

"Exactly! There're loads of examples." She gave a big yawn. "Well, I'm awfully tired from that slave driver, so I'm going to go to bed. If you're going to stay up, I hope you can do whatever it is you want to do in the dark."

"Goodnight, Vi," Harry said, turning off the lights for his sister. But all Violet said back was "Mmm" as she quickly drifted off to sleep.

Harry did stay up, and he did keep it dark. Past events kept rolling over in his mind – all the strange things that happened to him, his sister, and Dudley. Looking back, it was amazing he thought it so astonishing that he was a wizard in the first place. Was that why Violet was so calm before – because she had actually remembered all these weird things? Eventually, fatigue enveloped him, and he joined his sister in sleep.

The morning came all too soon for Harry. He must have stayed up later than he thought. The morning also came loudly.

A horrible blaring echoed through the house, and Harry jumped out of bed. Violet too, jumped out of bed, but landed on her back instead of her feet.

"What happened?" she asked from the floor. Getting up, she continued, "Are we under attack?"

Harry looked around groggily, rubbing his eyes. It was then that he heard a booming, but kind voice coming from the first floor.

"Hey! Everybody up? We've got to go!"

Harry and Violet looked at each other. It was Hagrid! But if he made that noise, why were the Dursleys not yelling? Whatever the reason, it was a welcome change. Harry quickly grabbed his stuff and made for the restroom to change.

Coming out of the restroom, he passed Dudley who waddled as fast as he could in front of Harry, shoving him as he went. Just then, Violet came out of their room, fresh-faced and dressed in her best. Too bad her best wasn't that good, since it came from Dudley.

All three kids went downstairs, and found Hagrid sitting on the couch smiling.

"About time. I was getting worried. Now, where're your folks, Dudley?" he asked.

Harry and Violet again exchanged glances, while Dudley said, "They're…well – they're not here. They told me yesterday they had some business to attend to, or something like that. They gave me money though, to buy my stuff."

"Well, I guess if that's the case, you can tell them how to get to where we're going when you get back. Remember, I'm here for this one time. You'll have to do your other shopping yourself."

"Hagrid," said Harry. "How are we supposed to pay for things? I don't think the Dursleys are going to pay for anything for me."

"Hey, maybe you can't go!" Dudley said with a big stupid grin on his face.

"Nah, your parents left you plenty of money. You won't have any trouble. By the way, you two got your letters? There's a list with them." Both Harry and Dudley had to run back upstairs to get them. When they came back, Hagrid was rummaging in his coat. He then pulled out a large tan pouch. "Dumbledore got the Ministry to connect your house to the Floo Network for today. Your folks can get it set up permanently later if they want. Be a good idea to, anyway."

"There you go again, talking about stuff we don't understand," said Violet with a bit of humour in her voice.

"I suppose you think you're coming to? Well, I guess since nobody else is here, you have to, so count yourself lucky. Anyway…Floo. It's best to see it first hand. Well, as much as we can see anyway. Here."

He walked towards the fireplace and opened the pouch.

"Now then, Floo's a way to travel for wizards. You just take this stuff here," he pulled out a pinch of powder from the pouch. "It's called Floo Powder. And, you throw it into the fireplace." He did as he described, and instantly the fireplace was awash in green flames. "Don't worry, it won't hurt at all. Violet, why don't you go first?"

Violet looked around uncertainly, and stepped forward.

"Now, all you need to do is step into the fireplace, and say your destination. Our destination is Diagon Alley. Say it clear now, don't want to confuse it. Keep your elbows tucked in, and don't jump out too early. Keep your eyes shut, and try not to breathe in or you might get a lungful of soot. Just say the words as clear as you can and the rest should be easy. Go ahead, give it a go." He gestured to the fireplace.

Carefully, Violet made her way to the fireplace and placed a hand cautiously into the green flames. After holding it there for a while, she walked into the fireplace, and said in a loud voice, "Diagon Alley!" And in a woosh of air, the fire and Violet were gone.

"There, now that wasn't so hard. You next, Harry. A pinch is all you need, but you need a pinch for every trip. So here, grab yourself some, and hop in!" He smiled warmly at Harry.

Not knowing what else to do, he grabbed a small handful of Floo Powder (what was a pinch to Hagrid was considerably more to everyone else) and threw it into the fireplace. Once again, green flames rose up and engulfed the fireplace. Harry, wanting to get this over with, took a deep breath, stepped into the fireplace, and said as clearly as he could, "Diagon Alley!"

The fire was actually kind of nice, but the trip was anything but. He felt like he was being sucked down a giant drain, and he seemed to be spinning very fast. His ears were ringing, and then it felt like somebody with cold hands was slapping him in the face. The unusual sensations continued, his ears still ringing and ringing, his body spinning and spinning, when he finally hit a hard floor. Looking up, he saw Violet smirking down at him.

"Less graceful of an exit than I made, I'll tell you that," she said, still smirking.

"Sod off," Harry said, gently pushing his sister. He knew she was joking. Violet was always falling down in spectacular ways. If he fell, she certainly did.

Harry turned around to see the fireplace he had just exited erupt in green flames and spew out a fat, blond Dudley.

Leaning over and whispering into Harry's ear, Violet said "I'm surprised he didn't get stuck."

Harry snorted, trying to suppress his laughter. He then looked around, realised there was no reason to suppress anything, and started laughing full force, his stomach muscles aching.

Just as he was finished laughing, Hagrid stepped out of the fireplace in a whirl of green flame.

"Right then. Everybody here?" he said, looking around. "Looks like it. Let's head out then. First stop's Gringotts. Best wizard's bank in the world and the best place for anything you want to keep safe. They also exchange Muggle money." Hagrid looked around a bit and lowered his voice. "Oh, and, Harry…best to try to keep unnoticed. We don't want anybody getting sight of you and starting a mob." Dudley gave Harry a dirty look at this, but said nothing.

The walk to Gringotts was the most fascinating experience Harry had ever had. There were so many shops selling all sorts of strange things along the way. Looking closely, Harry saw signs that said things like "Enchant Your Own Earwax!" and "Radiating Figs, Eight Galleons a Pound!"

Harry did not have much time to ponder what radiating figs were, or why somebody would enchant their earwax, because they had reached their destination.

Hagrid turned to them and said, "This here's Gringotts. Now, let's get you two fixed up for shopping,"

Harry thought it was rather imposing. It was a large building made with marble, and as they entered they were greeted by a long set of marble steps leading up to a huge bronze door. Next to that door was a strange, impish little creature dressed in a uniform of scarlet and gold.

"That's a goblin," Hagrid said in a hushed whisper. "This whole place is run by them. Don't want to mess with goblins, vengeful creatures they are."

"Look kind of funny to me," said Dudley.

"Best keep that kind of comment to yourself here," Hagrid said.

As they walked through the bronze door, they were greeted by what must have been a hundred other little goblins running around accomplishing their work, sitting on tall stools behind long counters, weighing gold coins with bronze scales, measuring silver coloured powders and examining precious stones through eyeglasses. There were other doors all around, and more goblins were showing people in and out of these. Hagrid, Harry, Violet, and Dudley made their way to the counter.

"Good morning," said Hagrid. "We need to get some money out of the Potter vault. And Mr. Dudley Dursley here needs to have his Muggle money exchanged."

"You have the key for the vault sir?" asked the goblin.

"I got it right here," said Hagrid, handing the goblin a small gold key. The goblin inspected it closely.

"Everything seems to be in order," he said. "I shall get somebody to take you to the vault, while Mr. Dursley remains here to see his currency exchanged. Hodrok!"

Hodrok was another goblin, who came quickly to his summons. Hagrid gave the goblin a nod, and then Hagrid, Harry, and Violet followed him towards one of the doors, leaving Dudley behind.

Past the door, there was a narrow stone passageway lit by torches and little railway tracks on the floor. Hodrok whistled, and a cart came hurtling up the tracks towards them. They followed the goblin in, and were off.

At first, Harry tried to figure out where they were going. Left, right, right, left, side fork, left…but it was impossible. The car seemed to know where it was going, however, because Hodrok was not steering.

Harry's eyes stung from the cold wind, but he kept them open, trying to see if there was anything exciting in the tunnels. They soon reached an underground lake, where huge stalactites and stalagmites grew from the ceiling and floor.

"I always forget," said Harry. "What's the difference between a stalactite and a stalagmite?"

"Stalagmites come from the floor, the other from the ceiling. An' don't ask me questions just now, I think I'm gonna be sick."

Now that Hagrid mentioned it, he did look a bit green. Soon the cart stopped at a small door, and as soon as it did, Hagrid got out and leaned on a wall to help keep his legs from trembling. The goblin took the gold key and opened it. Lots of green billowing smoke came out, and Harry waited impatiently for it to clear so he could see what was inside. When he did, his mouth fell open.

Inside were mountains of gold coins, columns of silver, and mounds of little coins that looked like they were made of copper.

"Remember, this is both of yours, so don't go overboard. This should stay for your schooling."

Violet looked awestruck. "For our school? Yeah, right! This looks like enough to buy anything I could ever want!"

It was indeed incredible. Harry was grateful Dudley hadn't come, or else the Dursleys would probably try to take it all away. They had always complained that Harry and Violet had cost them too much to take care of, and all this time there had been this fortune buried under London.

Violet walked over to one of the gold piles and let herself fall into it.

"This feels great…so much money…," she let out wistfully.

Hagrid walked over and had Harry put some of it into a bag. Violet remained lying on her pile.

"Gold ones are Galleons," Hagrid said. "Seventeen silver Sickles to a Galleon, twenty-nine bronze Knuts to a Sickle. Right, this should be enough for a while. The rest will be kept safe for when it's Violet's turn."

"Wait, Hagrid!" Violet said.

"Eh? What is it?"

"Do you have another bag?" she asked.

"Well, yeah, but you don't need–"

"Trust me, we need it." She looked at him with pleading eyes.

"Oh, all right. Here." He threw another bag to Violet, who grabbed it quickly and ran over to a pile of Knuts.

"Here we go," she said, while scooping in some Knuts. She then walked over to a pile of Sickles and threw in four of those. A satisfied smile on her face, she ran to Harry and thrust the bag into his arms. She forcefully took the other bag out of his hands and gave it to Hagrid.

"I don't under–" began Hagrid, but Violet cut him off.

"Our aunt and uncle would do everything possible to take this money from us, if they knew about it. If Dudley finds out we have so much, he'll tell his parents. So I figured Harry should be seen by Dudley with a bag of mostly worthless coins, while you keep the real money safe from his eyes. That way we can look poor, and the Dursleys won't have any reason to do anything stupid."

"That's a great idea Violet!" said Harry. "I didn't even think about that."

"Of course you didn't. We both know I'm the smart one." She smirked as she said this.

"Well, if you two think it's best," Hagrid said. "Anyway, we've got to get back now."

oOoOoOo

Another wild cart ride later, they were back on the ground floor of Gringotts. They met up with Dudley who held his hands out proudly showing about ten gold Galleons.

"And I have more in my pockets," he said, obviously trying to show Harry and Violet up.

"Wow," Violet said with an exaggerated look of astonishment on her face.

"All we got was this," she said, snatching the bag of Knuts and Sickles from Harry's hands. She pulled out a handful of bronze coins and a single silver one and showed them to Dudley.

When Dudley saw her hand, he started laughing uncontrollably.

"Your parents really were lazy bums!" he said through his laughter. Harry felt a surge of anger run through him, and just when he was about to say something, Hagrid beat him to it.

"Now, wait just a minute!" he said. He was about to say more, but Violet put her hand on him, gesturing for him to stop. He must have then realised that this was what she wanted, as he did not say another word.

As the laughter died down, Hagrid told them to take a look at their list. Bringing it out, Harry read:

HOGWARTS SCHOOL of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY

UNIFORM

First-year students will require:

Three sets of plain work robes (black)

One plain pointed hat (black) for day wear

One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar)

One winter cloak (black, silver fastenings)

Please note that all pupils' clothes should carry name tags.

COURSE BOOKS

All students should have a copy of each of the following:

_The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1)_

By Miranda Goshawk

_Through the Ages: A Journey into the History of Magic_

By Nicholas Flamel

_Basic Magical Theory_

By Arlene Flickmore

_A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration_

By Emeric Switch

_One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi_

By Phyllida Spore

_Potions for Beginners_

By Lithia Stormbrew

_Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_

By Newt Scamander

_Living in the Dark: Basic Methods to Combat the Dark Arts_

By Billic Semsore

OTHER EQUIPMENT

1 wand

1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)

1 set of glass or crystal phials

1 telescope

1 set of brass scales

Students may also bring pets.

PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICKS

After checking their lists, Hagrid suggested that they start with their uniforms, and took them to a place called Madame Malkin's Robes for all Occasions.

"Listen," he said when they got near the entrance, "I'm still feeling a bit put out from Gringotts, mind if I go slip into a nearby pub for a little pick-me-up?"

He did still look a bit sick, so Harry nodded, who was soon mimicked by Violet. Dudley just shrugged in a non-committal fashion. Seeing that as a "yes" from all three, he left them standing there at the entrance of the shop.

Feeling a bit nervous, Harry made his way into the shop, followed by Dudley. Violet, not nervous in the least, ran inside as soon as Hagrid left.

Madame Malkin was a squat, smiling witch dressed all in mauve.

"You three for Hogwarts? Got some stuff ready for that. Another young man is being fitted right now in fact."

"Oh, I'm just here with my brother. I'm not going to Hogwarts until next year." Violet stared down at the floor after she said this. She was obviously still sad about being left behind.

"Oh, I see. Well, come on then you two. Let's get started."

In the back of the room, a boy with deep red hair and a pale gaunt face stood on a footstool, while a witch pinned up his black robes.

"Myrtle!" yelled Madam Malkin, while setting up another footstool and gesturing for Harry to stand on it.

Myrtle was an old looking witch with lank grey hair and thick glasses.

"You get this other young man fitted for me, will you?" Madam Malkin said to Myrtle, indicating Dudley.

Madame Malkin then threw a long black robe over Harry and began to pin it to the right length.

Violet stood there, smirking at Harry.

"Oh, you're going to look so pretty in your new dress," she said.

"It's not a dress," grumbled Harry.

"That yours?" said the red-headed boy next to him.

"What?" said Harry.

"She of relation?" he said.

"Yeah, she's my sister," said Harry.

"Ah. I have two of those, myself."

"You know, I'm right here," said Violet, irritated that they were talking about her as if she were an object.

"I can see that," said the boy, "And I'm sure your brother is aware of it as well."

Harry was worried. He was afraid Violet was going to start yelling, but then she did the most unexpected thing. She laughed.

"What's so funny?" the boy asked.

"Oh, nothing, I just wasn't expecting that. What's your name anyway?"

"Sorry, seemed to have forgotten to introduce myself." He turned to Harry. "My name is Alexandros Halcyon, but I'd much prefer if you call me Alex." He extended his hand. Not knowing what else to do, Harry took it and said, "Harry Pott – Ouch!"

"Oh, sorry," said Madame Malkin. "Didn't mean to stick you there. But imagine, Harry Potter in my shop!"

"Are you really?" said Alex. "Didn't know you had a sister. Nobody ever mentioned it in any of the books."

"I'm in books?" Harry said, astonished.

"Of course. Just a few here and there, mostly about how you defeated the Dark Lord and such."

"Oh," said Harry.

"And your name is," said Alex, extending his hand to Violet.

"Violet Potter," she said. "I'm much better than ol' Harry over there, by the way," she added with a smile.

"Oh, I'm sure of it," said Alex, cracking a grin himself. Harry wasn't sure, but that grin made him feel slightly uncomfortable. It faded as soon as they stopped shaking hands, though.

They stood there getting pinned for what seemed to be a minute, before anybody said anything.

"Ouch!" said Alex. Or at least it seemed like it. It came from where Alex was, but it did not sound like him. It sounded almost like a whisper.

"Excuse me, but could you please be very careful when pinning the robe around my arm?" said Alex. "I have a pet snake there you see, and she likes to stay there."

The witch who was pinning him up looked frazzled at the news, but quickly shook it off.

"No problem, sir," she said.

"You have a snake?" asked Violet.

Alex straightened up a bit to give the witch better access to his neck. "Indeed. Bit of a family thing, really. I would have much preferred a cat. I'm thinking I should perhaps buy one myself."

It was then that Hagrid walked into the shop, looking much better than he was before.

"How you been holding up, Harry? After this I think we should grab a bite to eat. There's a bunch of nice places to get a bite in Diagon Alley."

"You're Hagrid, right?" said Alex.

"Yeah. And who're you?"

"My name is Alexandros Halcyon. Both my parents have spoken of you on occasion."

"Oh, I remember them. Not too interested in my subject were they?" Hagrid seemed a bit sceptical of Alex's parents.

"No, I don't think so. They did say you were nice though."

"Well, that's something I guess."

"You're all done dear," said the witch pinning Alex.

"Ah, thank you," said Alex. "Well, I'll see you at Hogwarts later I suppose. And you, Violet, next year. Before I leave, that fat thing over in the corner – he came in with you…he related to you two as well?"

"Yeah, he's our cousin," said Violet. "He's really mean, and snobby, and, well…fat."

Alex cracked another grin at that. "I see. Well, see you at Hogwarts then, Harry. Perhaps we shall be in the same house."

And with that he walked off.

After Madame Malkin's, they did as Hagrid suggested and went to find a place to eat. They stopped at a small shop with a sign that said in large flashing colours:

Artisque's Breakfast: Open 5am – 12pm every day!

Harry decided to pay for this with his bag of Knuts, to make sure Dudley noticed it getting smaller – not that he was really smart enough to, but better safe than sorry. Dudley tried to get Hagrid to pay for him, but Hagrid would not budge.

"You have your own money. You should use it," he said gruffly.

As they were eating, Harry's mind began to drift. His recent brush with fame led him to think about his parents again, and how they died. It was then that Harry remembered what he had been thinking about the other day.

"Hagrid," he said.

"What is it Harry?" said Hagrid.

"Why was Voldemort – sorry – _he_ after me?"

"Well, first off, Harry, people normally call him 'He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named,' or 'You-Know-Who.' Or, 'The Dark Lord,' but that's a bit dodgy. Anyway, I don't really know Harry. I don't think anybody knows. Maybe if you ask Dumbledore?"

"And, Hagrid," Harry continued. "Alex mentioned something about houses. There are school houses at Hogwarts?"

"Oh, yes. Four of them. Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. They're all fine, except for Slytherin. Slytherin's sort of got this reputation, and for good reason too. You-Know-Who was in that house. And so were a lot of his followers."

"You-Know-Who was in Hogwarts?" asked Violet.

"Many years ago," Hagrid said. "I bet you that kid you were talking to ends up going to Slytherin. His whole family has always been there. Dodgy crowd if you ask me."

"He seemed nice enough," piped Violet.

"I'm just saying to be careful."

They got their books at a shop called Flourish and Blotts. Like everything else in Diagon Alley, it was amazing. Books of all descriptions were stacked all the way to the ceiling, books as large as paving stones and bound in leather, books as small as postage stamps and wrapped in silk. Dudley, who was never wild about any book, was actually excited over some of these. Harry could not blame him. Even Violet kept begging Hagrid to let her buy a few.

"Not until you've had a bit of school. You wouldn't be able to work anything in them without some education. Besides, you aren't allowed to use magic in the Muggle world except in very special circumstances."

Even with all that chastising, Harry could have sworn he saw Dudley sneak a few extra books that were not on the list.

Hagrid did prevent Dudley from buying a silver cauldron though. ("It says pewter on your list," said Hagrid.) Harry managed to get a nice set of scales for weighing potion ingredients, and a collapsible brass telescope.

The Apothecary was fascinating, even though it had a horrible smell. While Hagrid busied himself with getting two sets of basic potion ingredients at the counter, Harry, Violet and Dudley explored the shop. Once they were done at the Apothecary, Hagrid checked the list again.

"Just your wands left. Where'd Violet go?" he asked, looking around.

"I'm right here. Harry forgot something." She shoved a large bag into Harry's hands. "Left some of his school books. I don't know what he'd do without me sometimes," she added with a mischievous grin.

"Right," said Hagrid. "Well, off to Ollivander's. Only place for wands."

A magic wand…this was what Harry was really looking forward to.

The shop was narrow and shabby. Peeling gold letters read:

Ollivanders: Makers of Fine Wands Since 382 B.C.

A bell rang as they opened the door and stepped inside. The shop was cramped, with the back full of shelves, which were full of boxes. The front was empty, except for a single chair that Hagrid sat on. For some reason, the back of Harry's neck prickled. The store seemed to radiate with its own mysterious magic.

"Good morning," said a cool voice from somewhere in front of Harry.

Harry jumped, and Violet squealed. Hagrid must have jumped too because there was a loud crunching noise and he quickly got off the chair.

"Hello," said Harry. The man was behind a stack of boxes, but swiftly walked towards the counter to get a good look at Harry.

"Ah yes, I've been expecting you, although not quite so soon." He looked into Harry's eyes, and Harry found himself feeling uncomfortable. "You have your mother's eyes. It seems only yesterday she was in here herself, buying her first wand. Ten and a quarter inches long, swishy, made of willow. Nice wand for charms." He moved over to Violet. "Ah, you have your mother's eyes too. Except for the colour...that hazel definitely belongs to your father. He had a mahogany wand. Eleven inches. Pliable. A little more power, and excellent for transfiguration." He moved on to Dudley. "And you – you don't look anything like your aunt." He moved back to Harry. "Your scar," he said. "I'm afraid I sold the wand that did that. Thirteen-and-a-half inches. Yew. Powerful wand, very powerful, and in the wrong hands…well, if I had known what that wand was setting out into the world to do…."

He looked over at Hagrid.

"Rubeus! Rubeus Hagrid! Oak, sixteen inches, rather bendy isn't it?"

"Yes, sir. Got it right here with me," Hagrid said.

"Yes, it's a good wand. Served you well all these years I take it?"

"Yes, best wand I've ever used…not used too many other wands mind, but you know…."

"Quite," Ollivander said. He turned to Harry again. "Well now, Mr. Potter." He gave Harry a piercing look, and pulled out what looked like a tape measure out of his pocket. "Which arm's your wand arm?"

"Well, I'm right-handed," said Harry.

"Hold it out then, that's it." He measured Harry from shoulder to finger, wrist to elbow, shoulder to armpit, and around his head. As he measured, he said, "Every Ollivander wand has a core of a powerful magical substance. We use unicorn hairs, phoenix tail feathers, and dragon heart-strings in our cores. No two Ollivander wands are the same, just like no two unicorns, phoenixes or dragons are the same. And of course, you will never get the best results from someone else's wand."

Harry suddenly noticed that the tape measure was measuring on its own, while Mr. Ollivander was busy flitting through the shelves, picking up boxes.

"That will do," he said, and the tape measure crumbled into a heap on the floor. "Here, try this one," he said, placing a wand into his arm.

Harry waved it around, and it was instantly snatched by Mr. Ollivander. "No, that won't do," he said.

Harry tried, and tried and tried, and soon the pile of used wands was up to his knees.

"Not to worry, we'll find the wand for you!" Mr. Ollivander said, delighted. "Hmm, I wonder – yes, unusual combination, holly and phoenix feather, eleven inches, nice and supple."

Harry took the wand and suddenly felt warmth in his fingers. He brought the wand up, and then brought it down quickly, and a stream of gold and green sparks shot from the end like fireworks. Hagrid clapped, and Violet cheered. Dudley was obviously hoping no wand would work, and Harry would have to stay home, as he was looking like he has just stepped in something smelly.

Mr. Ollivander cheered right along with Violet. "Oh, Bravo! Yes! Very good. Well, how very curious…," he said slowly.

He put Harry's wand back in its box and wrapped it in brown paper still muttering, "Curious…how curious…."

"Excuse me," said Harry. "But what's curious?"

"I remember every wand I've ever sold, Mr. Potter. And what's curious is that you should get this wand, when its brother gave you that scar." Harry swallowed. "Yes, thirteen-and-a-half inches, yew. Curious how these things happen. The wand chooses the wizard you know, and I think it's safe to say that you're going to accomplish great things. After all, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named accomplished great things. Terrible, yes, but great."

Dudley's wand selection went by rather quickly. He was only on his second wand ("maple, six-and-a-half inches, rather thick and strong, with a dragon heartstring core") when faint green and yellow sparks erupted in short bursts from the tip of his wand. Mr. Ollivander wasn't very excited when Dudley bought his wand, and this fact gave Harry a burst of warmth inside.

Afternoon had come, and they made their way back to the fireplace they came by. Laden with packages, it was a bit difficult to get everything back to the house, but they managed.

The Dursleys had returned when they got back, and Hagrid spent a few minutes speaking with them in private. When he was done, he walked over to Harry and handed him a strip of paper.

"That's your ticket to Hogwarts. First of September – King's Cross. It's all on your ticket. See you soon, Harry."

He walked out the door, and Harry ran upstairs to watch him leave. Harry was astonished to find that once Hagrid got to the end of the driveway, he disappeared.

* * *

A/N

Some talk about reviews:

I'm flattered that my premise is unique. I do hope I write it well enough to do the premise justice then.

What does EU stand for? I know, but that's a secret! Maybe after I'm completely done I'll say what it means. It's not that fancy, it's just more fun to keep it secret.

And Hagrid not being expelled and becoming a teacher earlier is a very very complicated and long matter that will be explored in depth in year two. I do hope you'll stick with me until then.


	4. The Secret of Mrs Figg

Two weeks passed and the Dursleys seemed to have completely changed their tune regarding Dudley's magical nature. All of a sudden, Dudley had an amazing gift and was going to astound all the other witches and wizards (it had taken a long time for Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon to start using those words) with his talent. On the other hand, Harry and Violet were still the scum of the earth. Violet still did all the cooking and cleaning, and Harry was still expected to help out with Violet's "constant failings," in addition to his other chores. Harry sometimes wished his aunt and uncle thought **he** failed a bit more often so that he could get some help.

"Violet!" yelled Aunt Petunia. "What are you doing still asleep? Get down here right now!"

Harry rolled over, shielding his eyes from the morning light filtering through the curtains. Aunt Petunia had not said anything to him yet. Maybe he could catch a little extra sleep….

"Oh, no you don't!" Violet said, yanking the covers off Harry. "If I have to get up, you do too. Why do I have to get up anyway?It's the weekend and it's really early, even for Aunt Petunia." She sighed as she dug through her pile of clothes on the floor (she seemed to never put things in the dresser), and found a pair of socks. "I've been reading through some of your schoolbooks. You'd think they'd have a spell to get more sleep. That's what I'd like."

"Violet! Are you up yet?" It was Aunt Petunia again. "Don't make me ask again!"

"As if she's asking anything," growled Violet. "You better be down there soon too!" she said, turning to Harry. She walked out the door muttering to herself (something about "slave drivers"). Harry sat alone, silently debating whether to go down himself, or try to go back to sleep. On one hand, he could probably squeeze in another half hour…but on the other hand, Violet would kill him.

Walking down the stairs, Harry realised what the big deal was. It was Dudley's birthday. How could he have forgotten?

Walking into the kitchen, Harry noticed the number of presents on the table. There were far more than last year. Violet, meanwhile, was frying eggs, looking as though she wanted to kill somebody. Harry was suddenly very happy with his decision to go straight downstairs.

It was then that Dudley waddled in, followed by Aunt Petunia, who had a ceramic smile plastered on her face. Violet finished her cooking and less than gracefully set plates on the table, doing her best to move enough presents out of the way to do so.

Sitting down at the table, Harry started eating as Dudley counted his presents. Violet soon followed, sneaking herself an extra piece of bacon.

As Dudley began tearing open his presents, Aunt Petunia piped up.

"Now, Popkin, you've been very good at school about keeping quiet about you being – a – a wizard. You need to know that even now, on your special day, we can't change that."

"That's fine, Mum. They wouldn't believe me anyway," said Dudley, as his greasy hands unwrapped a new VCR. This was a joke, as Harry knew he had already tried to convince his friends of his newfound status at school, and failed at it. Even after he showed them his supplies, they just assumed it was some big joke, and Dudley, in a lapse of intelligence, went along with it.

"And you two," Aunt Petunia said, turning to Violet and Harry, "no funny business. You'll be staying with Mrs. Figg again, and the last thing we need is trouble from you two about…_that_." She glared at them intently.

"We won't do anything," Harry said.

"Yeah, what could we do anyway? Like Dudley said, nobody would believe us." Violet turned to Harry and whispered in his ear, "I'm agreeing with Dudley. I must be off my rocker."

Harry snorted into his milk, and tried very hard to not show his amusement in front of Aunt Petunia.

Just then, the doorbell rang.

"Oh goodness, they're here!" Aunt Petunia cried. In walked Dudley's best friend, Piers Polkiss, and his mother. Piers was a scrawny boy, with a face like a rat. He was usually the one who held people's hands behind their backs while Dudley pounded them. "You two, don't say anything on the way to Mrs. Figg's!" said Autn Petunia. "Vernon, let's go."

oOoOoOo

Five minutes later, Harry and Violet were in Mrs. Figg's cabbage-smelling, old house. Mrs. Figg was a batty old lady who had a bit of a cat obsession. Whenever Harry and Violet went there, she would bore them with photo albums full of pictures of all the cats she had ever owned. She also always wore ghastly tartan carpet slippers, even while shopping.

Today was no exception. Within minutes of arriving they were sitting on the sofa with photo albums strewn about, hearing tales of Ms. Berrybottom and Nibbles. What was different was Violet. Normally, she was resigned to boredom, but a half an hour into the cats she seemed to be making a habit of alternately glaring at Mrs. Figg and Harry in turn, seemingly frustrated with something.

Revelation came soon, however, when Mrs. Figg left to get some more tea ("You can never have enough tea."), leaving Harry and Violet alone for a few minutes.

"God you're thick, Harry!" she whispered when Mrs. Figg went out of sight.

"What do you mean by that?" Harry said.

"You haven't been reading those books we got, have you?" she asked with an air of superiority around her.

"Sure I have! I mean…maybe not all of them – some of them seem more interesting than others, but it's not like they've been sitting there unused. What does it matter anyway?"

"It matters, because if you had read that magical animal book, you would have noticed that some of the cats in these pictures aren't cats. They're Kneazles."

"And that means…." Harry responded dumbly.

"What it _means_ is that Mrs. Figg must be magic! Kneazles aren't available to the common Muggle!"

"Already using magical lingo? Little early don't you think?"

Harry may have been imagining it, but Violet seemed to be steaming now.

"You should be taking this seriously! She's magical, I'm telling you!"

"And what if you're wrong? You heard our aunt and uncle. They'll kill us!" Harry was not quite sure if his sister was on to something or not. He now wished he had picked up that particular book instead of the history one.

"I'm not wrong," Violet said in a low voice, almost to herself, "and I'm going to prove it."

"Violet, I don't think–"

But what exactly Harry thought was never expressed, as Mrs. Figg chose that moment to shamble back into the room, holding a fresh pot of tea.

"Here we go," she said. Harry was not fond of Mrs. Figg's tea. It was as if she had never heard of sugar, or milk, or…anything you put in tea. It would not have been so bad, except the brew Mrs. Figg tended to choose was always extremely bitter. Harry had to choke down several cups every year. Violet was not quite as polite as him, and he usually had to drink hers too.

"Mrs. Figg," said Violet.

"Yes, dear?" said Mrs. Figg. Harry started getting worried.

"I was just curious. Some of your cats seem to be interesting breeds. Take Mr. Paws, over there on by the bookshelf. What breed is he?"

Seeing the glint of horror in Mrs. Figg's eye, Harry thought that Violet might be on to something.

"Oh well, I don't – don't really know myself. Nothing fancy." She looked noticeably startled, as if she already knew she had lost at some life-threatening game. Violet took this as a sign to not only push on, but to lay all her cards on the table.

"Oh, certainly nothing fancy. Maybe just a…Kneazle mix?" she said with a wry smile.

Mrs. Figg was a rather old woman and very pale due to her age. But once the words left Violet's mouth, Harry was startled by the amount of colour that drained from Mrs. Figg's face.

"Well – you – I – I have no idea – talking nonsense you are – what – who?" A few seconds of sputtering later, Mrs. Figg stopped talking completely and looked more resigned than she seemed before.

"Oh, this isn't going to end well for me," she said, "Who told you? How could you possibly know? Harry shouldn't have gotten his letter for months!"

"Dudley got his a few weeks ago. Harry's came with his."

"That fat oaf is a _wizard_? How fair is life, eh? Bet his worthless parents didn't like that, did they?"

Harry was shocked. Seconds ago he found out his babysitter was a witch, and now she was calling his cousin – who everybody else thought was perfect – a fat oaf, and badmouthing Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon. He did not know which turn of events was more amazing.

"So, it's true then?" Violet asked. "You're a witch?"

"Well, um, not exactly…no. I'm a Squib."

"What's a Squib?" Harry asked.

Mrs. Figg let out a sigh of frustration. "A Squib is a person born from magical parents, who can't do magic. Extremely rare occurrence, but oh, _lucky_ me. Oh, I've made a mess of things, you shouldn't have found out about this. Dumbledore's going to kill me."

"You know Dumbledore too?" Violet asked.

"Of course I know Dumbledore. Everybody knows Dumble– oh, well…I guess you two haven't met him yet. Anyway, even if Harry got his letter early, that still doesn't explain how you recognized a half-Kneazle when you saw one."

"I read some books," said Violet. "This thickhead," she said, waving towards Harry while he gave her a glare, "picked up the boring books. I was reading up on magical creatures, and Kneazles where mentioned. Anyway, what's all this about Dumbledore going to kill you, and us not supposed to know? And you – you knew about us! Everybody has apparently. What's so important that you couldn't tell us?"

"Dumbledore," she said simply.

"Dumbledore?" replied Violet.

"Yes. I was supposed to keep a watch on you and make sure nothing horrible happened. If something did, I was supposed to contact Dumbledore immediately, and he'd send help. You were supposed to be kept away from the magical world until you got your letters. And I couldn't have the Dursley's not let you come over here. If you enjoyed yourself, they'd certainly stop taking you to me, and I'd have less ability to keep track of things."

"Well, you certainly succeeded on that front – making us look at _cats_ of all things? I'd prefer lawn work."

Harry was not sure how hard Violet's work was, but the yard was always his duty. "Um…Vi, I don't think you'd like that much. This may be boring, but there weren't any mosquitoes…or massive heat waves…or ants…."

Violet ignored him. "So what happens now? I'm telling you, no more cats. How about we just act like we had a miserable time?"

"I suppose that's all that can be done. But please, don't tell Dumbledore you found out. If he doesn't find out, maybe I won't get in trouble."

"Sure, whatever," shrugged Violet. Suddenly, a gleam like lightning shone in Violet's eyes.

"You say that if Dumbledore finds out, you'll be in a lot of trouble? Well, you know…I've been known to let things slip when I'm unhappy," she said with a mischievous smile.

"Violet, that's not really nice," said Harry. He never liked when his sister acted like this. As nice as she was, sometimes she could have a wicked mean streak if it meant getting back at somebody, or getting something she wanted without being punished.

"Oh, come on, Harry! We've been living with the Dursleys for ten years, slaving away! I'm not asking much – maybe just a few days in the summer, some ice cream, maybe a trip or two back to Diagon Alley. It's just too much! I don't know about you, but Aunt Petunia is always yelling at me and making me do things! I sometimes think you have it far easier. I just…want a break." Tears were welling up in her eyes and Harry felt a twinge of guilt come over him.

"Violet," began Mrs. Figg, "I know it's hard there. Trust me, I _have_ been doing my duty. But we can't let them know you're enjoying yourself, and Dumbledore can't find out or he'll have my hide. I just don't see a way that–"

"Fake it!" yelled Violet. "Just talk to Aunt Petunia every now and then, and tell her you need us to move some furniture, or do your lawn, or fix your house, or…well, anything! It's not hard."

"Well, I mean…I…suppose that could work. But it couldn't be too often. And I can't take you to Diagon Alley. There are too many people there that talk to Dumbledore regularly. There's no question we'd be seen. But, I suppose I won't have to show off my cats anymore." Mrs. Figg tried to give a smile at this, but it came off as more of a grimace. She clearly was not happy with her predicament, regardless of her sympathy for Violet.

oOoOoOo

It was not much later before the Dursleys were back. Time seemed to have passed very quickly, but the knowledge that they would, if even infrequently, might be leaving the Dursleys left a warm glow in Harry's stomach.

* * *

A/N's

Short chapter compared to the last one, but there it is.


	5. Birthdays and Train Rides

Summer vacation soon started, and true to her word, Mrs. Figg called Aunt Petunia no less than eight times. They were not exactly "fun" but the visits were better than staying at the Dursleys. They never spoke with Mrs. Figg much. She seemed reluctant to talk about the wizarding world and subsequently her past, but Violet was so happy over leaving the Dursleys that she did'nt press it at all. Mrs. Figg did try to make the visits more enjoyable by providing things Violet wanted: such as ice cream, cake, and other assorted treats. Then again, maybe it was just to keep Violet happy so she wouldn't be inclined to let anything slip anywhere.

When Harry's birthday came up, to his surprise, Violet had a gift for him – not that she didn't celebrate his birthday, but she (and Harry for that matter) never got any pocket money to buy anything.

"While we were at Diagon Alley, I wanted to get something for you," she said, looking down on the floor. "Remember, Hagrid kept your Galleons, and I held on to the bag that was for show. I'm sorry I really couldn't be too choosy on what to get, since I had to get past Hagrid. But I got you this." She had in her hands a book, and handed it over to Harry. Looking at the cover, Harry read _The Subtle Art of Potion Brewing: Volume One _by Artibot Engelhide.

"I know a potions book isn't at the top of your list, but it was honestly the best I could get." She had a worried look on her face, and Harry immediately knew what she was looking for.

"It's okay, Vi. Really! This is my first gift, and it's from my sister! It's great; I'll read it from cover to cover as soon as I can. Really, Vi, thanks. I – you – you don't know how much this means to me."

It was true. Harry knew she had tried her best and worked hard to get him something. She could have gotten him a bag of beetle eyes, and he would have been just as pleased.

"Oh you…don't go making it to be such a big deal," Violet said, her voice trembling slightly.

Harry walked over and gave his sister a hug. He felt kind of bad; he hadn't had the foresight to get her anything while they were out. And now there was no way to get her anything at all.

Once they parted, Harry, trying not to look too guilty, said, "Violet, it's amazing that you got me this, but I – I didn't get you anything. I'm sorry. I just didn't think about it. I hope you can forgive me."

"Of course I can, you idiot," Violet said. "I didn't expect anything. Hagrid had your money, and I had a bag too. You couldn't have gotten me anything even if you _had_ thought of it."

"Yeah, well…I'm still sorry," said Harry.

The gifts did not end there. Later in the day, Harry walked into their room and found a beautiful snowy owl near his window. Next to it was a cage, a letter, and a medium sized package. Walking over, Harry took the letter, opened it, and began to read:

Dear Harry,

Didn't think I'd forget your birthday did you? Decided to get you an owl. Lots of kids want owls. Useful creatures. Inside the package is a cake. Now don't be greedy and keep it all to yourself. You should give some to your sister too. Sorry I couldn't deliver this personally, but I have some Hogwarts business to take care of. I'll see you soon.

Hagrid

The letter was written in a rather untidy scrawl, but not bad enough to where Harry had trouble reading it.

Harry walked over to his new owl. She was beautiful. Hagrid didn't mention a name, so Harry made a mental note to think of one later. Opening the package, he saw just as Hagrid said, a cake, thick in chocolate frosting with "Happy Birthday Harry" written in green icing. Sticking the letter into his pocket, Harry proceeded down the stairs towards the kitchen, and found Violet working on lunch. Instead of saying anything, Harry pulled the letter out of his pocket, walked over, and placed it in Violet's hands, putting a finger over his lips to indicate that she should be quiet about it. Following this, Harry quickly snuck back upstairs. He didn't want to be yelled at for anything.

Ever since they found out they were magical, the Dursleys had left Harry and Violet alone – at least more than they did previously. There was now a lot less yelling, and a lot more ignoring. They were allowed to take food up to their room, and to even watch television so long as they kept quiet and didn't take up too much room. For the most part, the Dursleys had started to act as if the Potters were not there, so long as the chores were done.

After fifteen minutes, Violet strolled into the room, her left hand holding a plate that had two rather small pork chops on it. She also carried two forks.

"Sorry I couldn't get knives. I didn't think I'd be able to sneak them up with the Dursleys in the kitchen. They said we didn't need knives to eat our food. Honestly!"

They ate their pork chops rather quickly (not that there was much to take their time on), and after seeing the cake, Violet said she had never seen anything so delicious looking that she could actually eat.

oOoOoOo

It was Violet's birthday, and the day before Harry and Dudley were to go to Hogwarts. Harry once again apologised for not having a gift for Violet, and reassured her that he read her potions book several times (something he wouldn't have done if it was not her first gift to him). He also mentioned that as soon as he could, he would send a present to her with Hedwig (a name Harry didn't pick, but one that Violet was attached to, having found it in one of Harry's textbooks somewhere), and that he would write weekly. He was sad that he had to leave her for an entire year, and he hoped that she would be okay alone with the Dursleys. Maybe he could come back for Christmas though. He hoped at least.

Luckily, there was one good thing to happen to Violet that day. Just like Harry, another owl showed up at their window, this time a small barn owl. It carried another letter, also from Hagrid, and another cake (this one white with brown icing). Violet decided to name her owl Elladora, a name Harry recognised from the potions book she gave him.

"What? I read it before I gave it to you. You didn't notice did you?"

Harry would have pressed the matter except he still felt bad for not getting her anything.

Finally, it was the day – the day Harry was going to Hogwarts. The day he was going to have to leave his sister behind for a whole year.

"Don't worry Harry. I'll be fine. Just make sure to keep your word and write to me every week. I'll write too, with Ella."

Harry piled all his stuff into a trunk, and rolled it downstairs. He made sure to take both his required potions text, and Violet's gift. On his way down, he bumped into Dudley, rolling his own trunk down. Harry was surprised it was taking him such effort; Dudley was easily larger than the trunk.

"Watch it, Potty," Dudley said, "or I'll have to curse you as soon as we get on the train."

Harry thought this was a bit much. He didn't think Dudley would be capable of anything, especially right now without any schooling. "Sure, Dudley," Harry said. "You do that."

Shoving past Harry, Dudley continued down the stairs, and went to his parents. Harry was almost glad Dudley was a wizard. He would probably be a poor one anyway. If Dudley wasn't also going, Harry didn't think the Dursleys would have taken him to the train station. He would have hated having that conversation.

oOoOoOo

Something strange was going on along the way. The Dursleys, all three of them, kept smiling at Harry, like they knew something he didn't. And when they were dropped off, Uncle Vernon seemed to make a point in telling Harry to have a good term, an evil smile on his face. It was so weird that Harry was going to ask Dudley what was going on, when he realised that Dudley wasn't there.

It wasn't too big a deal. Dudley was not his charge, after all. Instead, he decided to make his way to platform nine and three quarters. Except – there was not such a platform. There was platform nine, and platform ten. There was nothing in the middle.

The first thing Harry did was ask for help. He tried to move quickly, as he was attracting a lot of funny looks because of Hedwig. The guard had never heard of Hogwarts. And when Harry could not tell him what part of the country it was in, he started to get annoyed, as if Harry was being stupid on purpose. Harry finally asked for the train that left at eleven o'clock, but the guard said there wasn't one.

According to the large clock over the arrivals board, he had less than ten minutes to get to the train, and he had no idea how to do that. Hagrid must have forgotten to tell him something.

Then it clicked. Hagrid didn't forget to say anything. He told Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon, and assumed they would tell Dudley and Harry. They seemed to have told Dudley, as he was not anywhere to be found.

Harry was really starting to panic now. At that moment, a group of people ran past him, and he caught a few words of what they were saying. "…hurry boys, it leaves at eleven–"

Harry whirled around, his heart still racing. The speaker was a plump woman talking to four boys, all with flaming red hair. Each of them had a trunk, and one of them had an _owl_.

"Mum, can't I go too?" said a small girl Harry had not noticed before.

"Sorry, Ginny, you're not old enough. Now hurry, we don't have much time. Percy, you first."

Harry watched intently, afraid to blink in case he missed anything. A large boy, probably the oldest of them, came rushing forward towards the dividing barrier between platforms nine and ten, but just before he hit the barrier, a swarm of tourists blocked Harry's view, and by the time they cleared out, the boy was gone.

Harry looked at the clock. Less than five minutes left. Unwilling to wait for another boy to go through the barrier, Harry walked up to the woman.

"Um, excuse me," Harry said.

"Oh, hello, dear. First time at Hogwarts? Ron here's new too," she said, indicating the youngest of her four sons. He was tall, thin, and gangling, with freckles covering his face.

"Yes," said Harry. "But, you see, the thing is – I don't – well, I don't know how to–"

"How to get onto the platform?" said the lady. "Not to worry. All you have to do is walk straight at the barrier between platforms nine and ten. Here, watch Fred and George go first."

She looked at a pair of twins, also with freckles, but who were a bit squatter than the boy named Ron.

"Alright, Mum," said one of the boys. "I'll go first."

The boy started running towards the barrier, his twin soon following. Just when the first one was about to crash, he just disappeared. Harry paid closer attention to the second one, thinking he must have missed something, but the second boy disappeared the same way.

"See, dear?" said the woman. "Nothing to it. Here, you go next. Better hurry though, time's almost up."

Not wanting to be late, Harry positioned himself right in front of the barrier, and started pushing as hard as he could. He started at a fast walking pace, and quickly shifted into a slow run. Luckily, he didn't run into anybody on the way. As the barrier drew closer, he closed his eyes, and waited for the inevitable crash.

It didn't come. Harry slowed down, and opened his eyes.

A scarlet steam engine was waiting next to a platform absolutely filled with people. Harry would have stopped to stare a bit more, but after a quick look at his watch, he realised he didn't have the time. Harry ran through the crowds until he found an empty compartment at the end of the train. He put Hedwig in first, and then tried to heave and push his trunk through the door, but he couldn't do it. Twice he dropped it and smashed his foot.

"Need a hand?" said one of the red headed twins he had followed through the barrier. Harry was startled and once again dropped the trunk on his foot.

"Yes, please," Harry ground out.

"Oi, George! Come here and help!"

With the twins' help, Harry got his trunk in rather easily.

"See you, strange fellow!" said one of the twins. "We've got to be going. Train's ready to go."

Harry didn't blame them. Looking out of his compartment, there were many witches and wizards bustling through the train, probably all trying to find a compartment or their friends.

Harry's compartment didn't stay empty for long. First came a round-faced boy with brown hair, who greeted Harry quickly, and spent much effort in getting his trunk squared away. He seemed to manage without help though.

Next came the boy called Ron, who squeezed in through the dense crowd blocking the door, saying, "Can I please stay here? You wouldn't believe how crowded this place is."

Both Harry and the other boy nodded.

A few minutes later, the train seemed to calm down. Another boy had joined the compartment, as well as a girl in a summer dress.

"So," said the round faced boy, "…well, my name's Neville Longbottom. This is my first year here, and uh – hi."

There was a bit of silence after this, and a few people shuffled their feet, Harry included. Finally, Ron spoke up.

"Ron Weasley," he said, "This is my first year too. I like Quidditch, and my favourite team is the Chudley Cannons."

This seemed to cement the introductions, as the person next to Ron spoke up without hesitation. He had almost platinum blond hair, but with strands of light red mixed in. He almost reminded Harry of Alex, if only because he also possessed a gaunt face and a pale complexion.

"Well, my name is Apollon Elysian," he began. "I have a twin sister named Artemis, who's a pain, and I like to read. And…well, sorry, Weasley, but I'm not a big fan of Quidditch."

Ron flushed, and Harry was afraid he was going to get angry, but it soon passed. The girl next to Harry spoke up next.

"My name's Victoria Thompson and I'm completely new here. I had no idea magic existed until I got my letter. And if you think having a single twin is hard, try having two. I'm one of a set of triplets."

Both Ron and Apollon gaped at her. Harry guessed they would understand it best, Ron having twin brothers and Apollon having a twin sister.

All eyes were on Harry now, so he just ran straight into it.

"Er…my name's Harry Potter and–" The effect of his name was instantaneous.

Both Ron's and Neville's eyes shot up, while Apollon said "Wicked!" and Victoria gave a loud gasp.

"You're really him?" asked Neville. "I mean, you have the scar and everything?"

"Yeah," replied Harry. Just then the compartment door slid open, and the Weasley twins were standing in the doorway.

"We wanted to actually introduce ourselves properly," said one.

"We had to go quickly to get a compartment you see," said the other. "Place is a bit crowded – can never be too careful. Fred Weasley."

"George Weasley," said the other twin. "And that over there is our little brother, ickle Ronniekins."

"Sod off, you two," said Ron, turning scarlet again.

"Aww, does ickle Wonwon get embawassed in front of his compartment mates?" said Fred.

Harry, in an effort to stop further teasing, extended his hand and said, "Harry Potter."

"Woah," said George, as Fred did a sort of recoil.

"You're really him then," said Fred. "I thought I saw a scar."

"Can we see it?" asked Victoria.

Harry pulled back his bangs to show his scar. Everybody stared.

"Wow," said Neville. "So, that's where, you know…You-Know-Who…."

"Yeah," said Harry.

"Do you remember any of it?" asked Fred.

"Do you remember what You-Know-Who looks like?" asked George.

Harry was starting to feel very much like a sideshow spectacle.

"No," said Harry. "Well, if I think hard enough, I can remember some green light, but that's it."

"Wicked," said the twins at the same time. Everybody sat, staring for a few moments.

"Well, Harry, it was nice to meet you," said Fred – or was it George?

"Yes, we must be getting back. Lee Jordan has something he said he wanted to show us," said the other twin. "See you later, Harry." And with that, they both closed the door and left.

"I heard you went to live with Muggles," said Apollon. "Is that true?"

Harry wished he had made up a name. This was going to be an annoying process.

"Yeah. They're horrible. I…well, not all Muggles are, but my aunt and uncle definitely fit the bill for 'horrible.' I also live with my cousin, Dudley, and my sister, Violet. Dudley should be somewhere on this train. He's a wizard too, but my sister won't be coming until next year."

"Wow," said Ron.

"I didn't know you had a sister," said Neville. "It was never mentioned–"

"…in the books. I heard," said Harry, getting aggravated. He was not something to be gawked at.

Neville seemed to notice the frustration (as did everybody else) so his next statement had nothing to do with Harry. "I have a younger sister starting next year myself," he said. "She was so sad that she'd have to wait a whole year to come."

"That's funny," said both Ron and Apollon.

"I have a sister coming next year too," continued Ron.

"So do I," finished Apollon.

Victoria laughed. "All my sisters are already here. Isn't that something though? All four of you have younger sisters starting Hogwarts next year. Kind of strange isn't it?"

"A bit, yeah," said Ron.

They spoke a bit more about their family. As it turned out, Ron had five brothers, along with his sister. The oldest, Bill, worked for Gringotts in Egypt. The next oldest, Charlie, was working with dragons on a preserve in Serbia. The rest of his brothers where still at Hogwarts. Percy was made prefect this year, and delighted in making sure everybody knew it. And Fred and George both had very good marks and everybody thought they were funny. Ron was rather down throughout his explanations.

Apollon had almost as many siblings as Ron did. In addition to his twin sister, Artemis, and his younger sister, Adastria, he had an older sister already at Hogwarts, named Antigone. She had good grades, apparently, and wanted to work in business. Apollon also had an older brother named Andronikos, who he said didn't talk much to anybody. Apollon gave the impression that he did not really know much about him at least as far as brothers go.

Neville just had the one sister, Danielle. He spoke very highly of her, saying that she had already read all of his school books, and was hardly ever bothersome. He also spoke of his parents, who he seemed very proud of. They were both famous Aurors. He explained to Harry that Aurors were dark wizard catchers. He went further to say that his parents knew Harry's parents, and that he just had to introduce Harry to them one day.

Harry told everybody about his sister, and how she had to do all the cleaning. He mentioned he had to do the yard work, so the work was pretty well split between them. He didn't hesitate to talk about his cousin, Dudley, mentioning how spoiled and stupid he was, as well as how he was the fattest thing since baby whales.

Victoria's sisters were named Valencia and Veronica. They were not as close as one would expect triplets to be ("But then again, how often to you actually see triplets?" she had said), but she still loved them ("Don't tell them that though!"). Both her parents were Muggles, and had no idea the wizarding world existed before the letters came. Harry and Victoria had a short chat about that, which the other three boys found fascinating, having grown up in all-wizard families.

"It's amazing, isn't it?" Victoria said. "All this time, there was a whole world hiding here! I always have to ask questions, because there is still so much I don't know about this world."

"I know what you mean," said Harry. "I still don't know anything about Quidditch."

And at this, Ron was off. He was clearly in his element, as he went blazing through all the rules and teams, and why the Chudley Cannons where his favourite. Harry didn't really catch any of it, but it was nice to have the conversation topic well away from Famous Harry Potter.

Fifteen minutes into Ron's monologue, there was a clattering outside their door. Once it opened, they found a young student-aged boy behind a trolley full of what looked like sweets.

"You guys – and gal –" he started, winking at Victoria, who blushed, "want anything off the trolley?"

Harry suddenly realised he hadn't had any breakfast, and he jumped to his feet, followed by Apollon and Neville. Ron's ears, Harry saw, turned a bit pink, and Harry thought he heard him say something about having sandwiches.

Making his way out of the compartment and to the trolley, Harry realised that he didn't recognize any of the candies being sold. Instead of normal things like Mars Bars there were things like Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans, Droople's Best Blowing Gum, Clarity Cornets, Liquorice Wands, Jumping Jam, Chocolate Frogs, Cauldron Cakes, Pumpkin Pasties, and Fudge-Float. Not wanting to miss anything, Harry bought a little of everything, and paid the boy twelve silver Sickles and three bronze Knuts. Neither Apollon, nor Neville bought nearly as much as Harry did.

"And this," the Trolley Boy said, picking up a Chocolate Frog from his cart and throwing it to Victoria, who deftly caught it, "is for you." He winked at her, and she blushed again.

As Harry took his seat, Ron said, "Hungry are you?"

"Starving," Harry replied. "I haven't eaten all day."

"You don't know what half of that stuff is, do you?" asked Victoria. "Speaking of which, what _is_ this?" She held up her free Chocolate Frog. "If it's an actual frog, I…don't think I want it." Harry could tell she was trying hard not to seem disgusted. He had to admit, a real chocolate frog did not seem too tasty.

"Of course not," said Apollon. "They're just shaped like frogs. They also come with cards. You know…famous witches and wizards – to collect."

"Yeah, see what card you got Victoria. I'm still missing Agrippa and Thenric," said Ron.

Harry noticed Ron trying to hide what looked like wrapped sandwiches from the others while they all watched Victoria open up her first Chocolate Frog. Wanting to cheer Ron up, Harry spoke loudly.

"I think I bought too much," said Harry.

"Oh, you think so?" said Neville, grinning. "Wouldn't have guessed."

"Yeah, well, I don't think I could really eat all of this by myself. So, you know, if any of you want anything, you can help yourselves."

Harry felt his ears go pink as they stared at him. He wanted to be nice, but he didn't want to come off as some arrogant berk, showing off how many sweets he could buy.

A few moments passed and Victoria said, "Really? Great, thanks a lot!"

Neville and Apollon decided to dump their lot in with Harry's, so that everybody could just take what they wanted.

It was a good feeling, Harry thought, sharing with everybody. He had never really had much to share, and whenever he did get something, he only shared with Violet. Having four people around to help you eat through a pile of sweets (as well as to tell you to be careful around Bernie Bott's Every Flavour Beans, and to keep an eye out for your Fudge-Float) was great.

Much time passed, with everybody talking about how cool it was to finally be going to Hogwarts, Quidditch (again), and what house they wanted to be in.

"My whole family's been in Gryffindor," said Ron. "They'd probably disown me if I wasn't in it, but I suppose Ravenclaw wouldn't be _too_ bad."

"Imagine being in Slytherin though," said Apollon. "I think I'd leave, wouldn't you?" He asked this, but Harry did not think he was really looking for an answer. "Most of my family's in Gryffindor too. I think I have a few Ravenclaw cousins, but, you know, it's hard to keep track."

It was then that the compartment door opened. But instead of somebody pushing a trolley, it was a blond haired boy with a pointy face. He was already dressed in his Hogwarts robes.

"I hear Harry Potter's in this compartment," he said. "Is it you then?" he said, pointing to Harry.

"Yeah," Harry said. The boy made him feel a bit uncomfortable. He did not have an admiring tone like the others. He sounded more like a collector who had found a particularly rare item, and wanted to claim it for himself.

Glancing at the other occupants of the room, the boy locked eyes with Victoria, and said "You. What's your surname?"

"Thompson," replied Victoria coolly.

The boy sneered.

"And what is _your_ name then?" said Victoria.

"Draco Malfoy," said the boy, while Ron coughed, perhaps trying to hide a snigger.

"Think my name's funny, do you?" said Malfoy. "No need to ask yours. It's obvious you're just another –"

But whatever Ron was another of was interrupted by the sound of quick footsteps running down the train, followed by a pale, red-topped blur running into Malfoy.

"Oh, Draco, I'm so glad I caught you," said the boy Harry now recognized as Alex, from the robes shop.

"What do you want?" said Draco, clearly not appreciating being interrupted.

"To protect you from yourself," replied Alex. "Why not wait until later to introduce yourself? We do not want them to see any of that Malfoy charm too soon do we?"

Malfoy, still sneering, allowed himself to be led away by Alex, who winked at Harry. He was not quite sure why he did that though.

As they left, everybody, minus Victoria, let out a long sigh.

"That was real lucky," said Neville.

"Yeah," said Ron. "I was afraid I'd have to do something nasty."

"What is it?" said Victoria. "What's wrong?"

"His family," said Neville. "The Malfoys were some of the first to join You-Know-Who during his rise to power. When You-Know-Who fell, they were also the first to claim bewitchment, and they were cleared of all charges. Bollocks if you ask me."

"My dad tells me stories of a Malfoy at the ministry," said Ron. "He thinks all Muggle-borns are inferior, and shouldn't be allowed to go to Hogwarts."

"That's awful!" cried Victoria.

"That's right," said Apollon. "But decent folk don't think like that. Everybody's equal in my book." He held his chin up high.

The door opened again, showing Alex, but without Malfoy.

"Sorry about that, everybody," he said. "Draco's an okay guy, if a bit stupid." Ron sniggered at this.

"Quite," said Alex. "Best get dressed. We shall be at Hogwarts anytime now. I'll see you later, Harry. Do try to be sorted sensibly." He seemed to have cracked a grin at his own remark, but Apollon, Harry noticed, was glaring at him.

As Alex left, Harry noticed that the train was indeed slowing down.

"How am I supposed to get dressed?" asked Victoria. "I'm not wearing a dress underneath my robes!" she huffed, after nobody said anything.

"What do you mean?" asked Ron. "Just dress here."

"_I'm not about to _–"

"Oh, that's right," said Apollon. "Muggles have this weird sort of modesty thing. It's quite all right. I had forgotten, and I'm sure Ron here did too." Ron turned a bit scarlet at this. "We wizards don't treat things that way," Apollon continued. "At least in our generation, and our parents's one as well, wizards and witches take changing in front of the opposite gender in stride."

Victoria coloured a bit. "Is that – that really true?" she asked, looking at Neville.

"Well, yeah," said Neville. "It's a recent thing though. My Gran thinks children our age are barking for thinking like that. But you – if you don't feel comfortable I guess we could–"

"No," Victoria interrupted. "If that's how wizards and witches do things, then I'll just have to learn to deal with it. I'll have to get used to it eventually. It might as well be now."

Harry did not want to look, so he just turned around and did his best to pretend nothing weird was happening behind him.

After they finished putting their robes on, a loud voice was heard throughout the train saying, "We will be reaching Hogwarts in five minutes time. Please leave your luggage on the train. It will be taken to the school separately."

Together, Harry, Ron, Apollon, Neville, and Victoria all walked out of their compartment and packed into the crowded corridor.

Making his way out of the train, Harry found himself out on a dark platform. It was really cold outside, and Harry gave a slight shiver. Then a lamp came bobbing over the students' heads, and Harry heard a familiar voice. "First years, first years…come with me! All right there, Harry?"

Harry saw Hagrid smile way above the sea of heads.

The first years followed Hagrid down a steep narrow path. The path was so dark Harry could not see far on either side of him, although he did notice that all four of his compartment-mates were still with him.

After a short amount of time, there was a loud "Oooooh!"

The path opened up onto the edge of a great black lake. On the far side of it, on a large hill, was a vast castle with many turrets and towers.

"No more than five to a boat!" called Hagrid, pointing at a small fleet of them on the edge of the lake.

Harry, Ron and Neville got into a boat, followed by Victoria and Apollon.

"Everyone in?" shouted Hagrid who had a boat to himself. "Right then – FORWARD!"

All at once the boats started moving, drifting slowly across the lake. Everyone was silent as they watched the castle get closer.

Soon, they were already to the other side, and they made their way up a flight of stone steps and crowded around a huge oak door.

"Everyone here?" asked Hagrid. "Right then."

Hagrid raised a gigantic fist and knocked on the door.


	6. The Sorting Hat

The door swung open, revealing a tall, black-haired woman. She looked severe, and Harry thought that this did not look like a woman he should cross.

"Here are the first years, Professor McGonagall," said Hagrid.

"Thank you very much, Professor Hagrid. I'll take them from here."

She opened the door all the way, and Harry was astounded. The entrance hall was so big you could fit the Dursleys' entire house in it with no problem. The stone walls were lit with flaming torches, the ceiling was so high you could not make it out, and a magnificent marble staircase stood in front of them, waiting to lead them to the upper floors.

They followed Professor McGonagall, passing a doorway on the right. As they passed it, Harry could hear what sounded like hundreds of voices. The rest of the school must be there, waiting for them.

Professor McGonagall led them to an empty chamber off the hall. As they moved in, it got immensely crowded very fast. Everybody had to mash up against each other, and Harry was feeling a bit suffocated.

"Welcome to Hogwarts," said Professor McGonagall. "The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony because while you are here, your house will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with your house, sleep in your house dormitory, and spend most of your free time in your house common room."

Harry listened intently to Professor McGonagall's words. He knew about the houses already, but, come to think of it, he had never given any thought as to which one he really wanted to be in.

"The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school," continued Professor McGonagall. "I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting." She paused for a moment, looking at some of the students. "I shall return when we are ready for you. Please wait quietly."

As she left the chamber, Harry turned to Ron.

"How do we get sorted into our houses?" he asked.

"I'm not sure exactly," said Ron. "Fred said it hurts a lot, but I think he was just joking."

"I'm sure he was," said Neville, who was shoving his way towards Ron and Harry. "I asked my dad the same thing, but he just laughed and told me not worry about it." He stopped briefly as his cloak snagged on somebody's bracelet. "I'd – I'd think he'd mention if it hurt."

"Everyone!" shouted Professor McGonagall. She had returned without anybody noticing it seemed. "We're ready for you. Form a line – well – do the best you can with that. And follow me."

It was difficult. The room was so crowded it was hard to tell if you were in a line or just happened to be in a small clump that looked like one. As they filtered out of the room, the "line" took shape and they made their way out of the chamber, back through the entrance hall, and through a pair of double doors into the Great Hall.

Harry had never thought such a wondrous place existed. There were four very long tables, each housing hundreds of students, and above them floated thousands of small candles lighting up the whole room. Glittery silver goblets and gold plates filled the tables and at the top of the hall was another long table where the teachers were sitting. Professor McGonagall led them up so they faced the rest of the students. As Harry stood there he suddenly felt his stomach drop. He had not realised what it would mean when he first heard the Sorting would take place in front of the school. He knew what it meant now, and he was feeling very nervous. What if he messed up? What if he was not chosen at all? What if it was determined he did not have enough talent to make it at Hogwarts, and he had to leave? Dudley would not leave him be if that ever happened.

As Harry stared out into the tables, he noticed that along with the students, there were glittery silver ghosts sitting too. He supposed he should have expected it; it was a place of magic after all, and none of them as far as he could tell looked harmful.

As he was staring, he heard a small whisper say, "It's bewitched to look like the sky outside. I read about it in _Hogwarts, a History_."

Looking for the speaker, he found a bushy haired girl with large front teeth. Wondering what she meant, Harry looked up, and saw that there was no ceiling – at least it looked that way. All Harry could see was the black sky, dotted with thousands of stars.

Harry heard a _thunk_ as Professor McGonagall placed a four-legged stool on the ground. On top of the stool, she placed a very old, very battered, pointed wizard's hat.

_Maybe they had to pull a rabbit out of it_, thought Harry. Noticing that everybody else was staring at the hat, Harry stared too. For a long moment, there was silence, and then the tip of the hat twitched. A rip near the brim opened up like a wide mouth, and the hat began to sing. It sang about how it was a smart hat, and how it would sort them into their houses, each favouring certain characteristics.

As it finished, the whole room burst into applause. The hat bowed to each of the four tables in turn, and then sat quite still.

"Oh, I'll kill Fred and George," said Ron. "They were going on about wrestling a troll."

Professor McGonagall stepped forward, carrying a long bit of parchment.

"Now, when I call your name, you will put on the hat, and sit on the stool to be sorted," she said. Then she called out "Aamon, John!"

A tall brown skinned lad walked over to the hat, placed it on his head, and sat down. A moment later the hat gave a shout.

"RAVENCLAW!"

The table second to the left gave a loud cheer, and the boy walked over and sat at the Ravenclaw table.

"Abbot, Hannah!" called McGonagall.

A pink faced girl with blond pigtails stumbled out of line and put on the hat. It took another moment when –

"HUFFLEPUFF!" shouted the hat. The table on the far right gave a loud cheer, and the girl made her way to the Hufflepuff table, where the ghost of a fat monk waved to her warmly. "Boot, Terry" went to the Hufflepuff table too, and then Brocklehurst, Mandy went to the Ravenclaw table. "Burkley, Antonius" became the first Slytherin, followed by the first Gryffindor, "Brown, Lavender." Harry could see Ron's twin brothers catcalling.

Harry really started to worry now. This felt a lot like being picked for teams. Harry was always picked last, not because he was not any good, but because nobody wanted Dudley to think they liked him. Speaking of Dudley….

"Dursley, Dudley," called Professor McGonagall.

Harry saw Dudley stumble out of the line, and waddle over to the hat.

Harry poked Ron on the shoulder and whispered, "That's my cousin." Ron looked amazed.

Dudley sat there with the hat for a good long while before it finally called out, "SLYTHERIN!"

The claps for Dudley seemed rather subdued from the Slytherin table, something Harry found rather brightening for his day.

As the names went on, Harry noticed that sometimes the hat seemed to take a while, and other times, the hat would instantly call back a house.

"Elysian, Apollon," called out Professor McGonagall.

Apollon, who had gotten separated from Harry, Ron and Neville, waltzed over to the hat, and placed it on his head. Not a moment later, it called out, "GRYFFINDOR!"

Following Apollon was his sister, Artemis, who was also sorted into Gryffindor.

Harry was starting to feel worse. Dudley was chosen, and so far, everybody was doing fine. What if he wasn't? Harry wished that he had a last name that started with a letter at the beginning of the alphabet.

"Granger, Hermione," called out Professor McGonagall.

The bushy haired girl Harry overheard talking about the ceiling ran excitedly to the stool, and jabbed the hat on.

"GRYFFINDOR!" shouted the hat.

Harry looked around at everybody else. It seemed like they were all calm, with only a few nervous faces dotted around here and there. Did he really have anything to worry about?

"Halcyon, Alexandros!"

Alex walked calmly over to the hat, and almost methodically placed it on his head.

"SLYTHERIN," shouted the hat, almost a second later.

Slytherin could not be so bad, Harry thought. He thought Alex was a perfectly fine guy. Then again...Draco did seem to have some problems.

When it was Neville's turn, Harry watched him walk over and put the hat on his head. The hat took a long time to decide with Neville, but when it did, it called out, "GRYFFINDOR!"

When the pointy faced kid named Malfoy was called, he swaggered over to the hat at once; it barely touched his head before it screamed, "SLYTHERIN!"

"Potter, Harry."

It was finally his turn. As Harry stepped forward, he could hear a lot of whispers through the hall.

"_Potter_, did she say?"

"_The_ Harry Potter?"

Harry glanced at Neville at the Gryffindor table, who gave him a thumb's up, and then looked over at the Slytherin table for Dudley, who was glaring at him, and Alex, who had a knowing look on his face.

The hat dropped over Harry's eyes. He waited.

"Hmm," said a small voice in his ear. "Difficult. Very difficult. Plenty of courage, not a bad mind, and you're deeply loyal. Oh, there's talent, oh my goodness, yes – and a nice thirst to prove yourself, that's interesting. So where shall I put you?"

Harry thought about his new friends, Neville, already in Gryffindor, and Ron, who was sure to be put there too. Slytherin had Alex, but it also had Dudley and that Malfoy kid. Slytherin had also housed the man who killed his parents….

"Something wrong with Slytherin?" said the voice. "Oh, you could do great there you know, no doubt about that. A few possibly bad apples doesn't mean the whole house is bad, and Slytherin could help you on your way to greatness!"

Harry was starting to get swayed by the voice. It was strange, but he felt like the hat was giving him a choice. Well, if he had one – perhaps Slytherin would not be the best house, if only because Dudley was in it too.

"Oh, how sad," said the voice. "Well, if you're sure – better make it GRYFFINDOR!"

Harry heard the last word shout out into the great hall. He took off the hat and started walking towards Gryffindor table. As he sat down next to Neville, Harry noticed that he had gotten the biggest applause yet. Percy the Prefect got up and shook Harry's hand vigorously, while the Weasley twins yelled "We got Potter! We got Potter!" Neville patted Harry on the back and said, "Good job" while "Quinn, Daniel" was sorted into Ravenclaw.

Harry was so relieved to be sorted that he stopped paying attention to the other children still waiting for their turn – that is, until he heard a familiar name.

"Thompson, Veronica!" called McGonagall.

Harry's head whipped over to see a girl who looked exactly like Victoria walk over and put the hat on her head. Harry noticed that there were two other identical girls whom she had left behind.

The hat took a while with Victoria's sister, but eventually it called out, "RAVENCLAW!"

When it was Valencia's and Victoria's turn, the hat was a lot quicker, yelling out Ravenclaw almost as soon as it touched their heads. Harry clapped loudly along with Neville and the Ravenclaws. He was slightly disappointed though, about not having Victoria in Gryffindor too.

Harry zoned out again until he heard the names get to the W's, with "Watson, William." Finally, Ron's turn came.

Ron looked a bit sick as he walked towards the hat, so Harry crossed his fingers under the table. Not a second later did the hat yell out, "GRYFFINDOR!"

Harry clapped as hard as he could, as Ron collapsed into the chair next to him.

"Well done, Ron, excellent!" said Percy, as the Weasley twins made a bit of a show of shaking Ron's hand.

Harry looked down at his empty gold plate, and he only then realised how long ago the sweets from the train were. Once "Zeph, Sarah" was sorted into Ravenclaw, Professor McGonagall rolled up the parchment and took the Sorting Hat away.

At the teacher's table, a tall thin wizard with a slightly crooked nose stood up. He was very old judging by his silver hair and beard, both of which were long enough to tuck into his belt.

Harry nudged Neville and whispered, "Who's that?"

"Blimey, Harry, don't you know who Albus Dumbledore is?" said Neville.

"Oh, so that's Dumbledore! I'd heard of him, I just never knew what he looked like."

Neville shrugged and all was silent.

"Welcome!" said Dumbledore. "Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak!

"Thank you!"

He sat back down. Everybody clapped and cheered. For what, Harry had no idea.

"Is he – a bit mad?" he asked Ron.

"He does seem a bit, yes. But he's still the most powerful wizard in the world."

Harry suddenly noticed Ron's mouth was full while he said this. Looking back down at the dishes in front of him, Harry realised they were all piled with food! He had never seen so many things he would like to eat at one table.

The Dursleys had never really starved Harry, but even with Violet sneaking extra food away, he had never managed to eat his fill there. Dudley always managed to eat everything Harry really wanted, even if it made him sick. Looking over at the Slytherin table, Harry noticed Dudley was at it again; his plate was absolutely topped with mountains of food.

Harry looked back at his table, and started to put food on his plate.

"That does look good," said a voice to the side of Neville.

A ghost was floating just over Neville's shoulder, watching him eat his lamb chops.

"What, you can't – can't you eat?" asked Harry.

The ghost looked over and said, "I haven't eaten for nearly four hundred years. I don't really need to, but still, one does miss it. I don't believe I've introduced myself. Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington. Resident ghost of Gryffindor Tower."

"You're Nearly Headless Nick!" said Ron suddenly.

"I would prefer if you call me Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington," said the ghost.

"_Nearly_ Headless?" said a brown haired boy whom Harry knew to be named Dorian Summers.

"Yeah, how could you be _nearly_ headless?" This time it was a sandy haired boy named Seamus Finnigan.

"Like _this_," the ghost said as he seized his left ear. He pulled, and his whole head swung off his neck and fell onto his shoulder, but stayed on his neck by the means of a small sliver of flesh. Obviously somebody had tried to behead him and botched it up. Looking pleased at the stunned faces, Nearly Headless Nick flipped his head back onto his neck, coughed, and said, "So – new Gryffindors! I hope you're going to help us win the house championship this year? Gryffindors have never gone so long without winning. Ravenclaw has got the cup three years in a row, and before then, Slytherin managed it for four years! Talk around the castle is that Gryffindor's gone soft."

"They'll try, but you know, we new Ravenclaws are going to help get the cup for the fourth year running!" squealed a voice from behind them. Harry turned around and saw Victoria, (or at least he thought it was Victoria who spoke) along with her two sisters.

"Hear that, Gryffindors?" said Nearly Headless Nick. "We need that cup!"

With that, he floated away towards the other end of the table, chatting away at other newcomers.

"I wanted to introduce my sisters, and, well, they all wanted to meet you Harry. I told them I sat with you on the train, and well...you know. This is Veronica." She pointed to the girl on her left. "And this is Valencia," she said as she pointed to the right.

She turned to her sisters. "And that's Harry, as you know," she said.

Harry smiled weakly.

"And next to him, stuffing his face, is Ron Weasley," she continued, pointing to Ron. "And on the other side, Neville Longbottom." Victoria looked around. "Where's Apollon?" she asked.

"Er," said Neville, "the rest of his family is on the other side of the table. He went to sit with them, him and his sister."

"Oh," said Victoria. "Well, I'll have to go say hello. Come on, let's go find him." She gestured for her sisters to follow her, and they walked out of sight.

As Harry started to look back, he noticed an awful lot of moving between tables. Ravenclaws were sitting with Hufflepuffs, Slytherins with Ravenclaws, and Hufflepuffs with Gryffindors. Harry even noticed that Alex was sitting at the Ravenclaw table.

"Ron," Harry said, "what's the point of house tables if nobody is sitting at the right ones?"

Percy Weasley, who was previously talking to the bushy haired girl named Hermione Granger turned around at this, and spoke up in a lecturing voice.

"Well, you see, Harry, while there are separate houses, House Unity has always been encouraged. Even though the houses have differences, we're told to stick together like the founders did. To facilitate this, headmasters through the ages have allowed considerable leeway in inter-house relationships. Mostly, so that friends and family can be kept close even through house boundaries. I myself have been known to sit at the Ravenclaw table every so often." He gave a cough, and continued, "People can even visit other house common rooms, so long as they know how to get in, or are let in. But you can't stay the night. You must be back in your common room before curfew, and it is my job as a prefect to make sure that happens."

"Give it a rest, Perce, nobody here's going to do anything bad," said Fred Weasley.

"Yeah, when have you ever known us to misbehave?" said George.

Percy glared at them but said nothing.

When everyone had eaten as much as they could, the food disappeared, leaving sparkling plates as clean as before. Then, the dessert appeared: blocks of ice cream in every flavour you could imagine, apple pies, butter tarts, jam doughnuts, chocolate cake, Jell-O, rice pudding….

As Harry grabbed himself a treacle tart, the talk turned to their families.

"I'm half-and-half," said Seamus. "Me dad's a Muggle. Mum didn't tell him she was a witch 'til after they were married. Bit of a nasty shock for him."

Everybody laughed.

"What about you, Dorian?" asked Neville.

"Both parents are Muggles," said Dorian. "They were a bit apprehensive about letting me come to Hogwarts. But they caved in the end."

Harry, who was getting rather warm and sleepy, looked up at the high table. Hagrid was drinking deeply from his goblet, and Professor McGonagall was talking to a really short old man. Professor Dumbledore was talking merrily to another old man.

Finally, the dessert disappeared too, and Professor Dumbledore got up to his feet again. The hall fell silent.

"Just a few more words, if you please. I have some start-of-term notices to give out. First years should note that the forest on the grounds is forbidden to all pupils. And a few of our older students would do well to remember that as well."

Dumbledore's eyes flashed in the direction of the Weasley twins.

"I have also been asked by Mr. Filch, the caretaker, to remind you all that no magic should be used between classes in the corridors. Quidditch trials will be held in the second week of the term. Anyone interested in playing for their house teams should contact Madam Hooch. And finally, I must tell you that this year, the third-floor corridor on the right-hand side is out of bounds to everyone who does not wish to die a very painful death."

Harry laughed, along with a few other people, but it seemed that Dumbledore was really serious.

"That is all. Off to bed, everyone!" finished Dumbledore.

The Gryffindor first years followed Percy through the chattering crowds, out of the Great Hall, and up the marble staircase. Harry's legs felt like lead as he followed Percy. He was too sleepy to even be surprised that the portraits were moving, or that twice Percy led them through doorways hidden behind sliding panels and hanging tapestries.

They climbed for a very long time, and Harry started to wonder if they'd ever get there.

Suddenly, they stopped.

About a dozen eggs were floating midair, and all of a sudden they started hurling themselves at the first years.

"Peeves!" shouted Percy. "It's okay, he's just a poltergeist. Peeves, show yourself! Don't make me get the Bloody Baron!"

There was a pop, and a little man with wicked, dark eyes and a wide mouth appeared, arms still holding a few eggs.

"Ooooh, Ickle Firsties!" he said. "What fun!"

"Go away, Peeves!" said Percy.

Peeves stuck out his tongue and vanished, dropping the eggs on Hermione's head.

"You want to watch out for Peeves," said Percy.

"I've noticed!" yelled Hermione.

"The Bloody Baron's the only one who can control him. He won't even listen to us prefects. Ah, here we are."

At the very end of the corridor hung a portrait of a very fat woman in a pink silk dress.

"Password," she said.

"_Agment Twill_," said Percy, and the portrait swung open to reveal a round hole in the wall. They all scrambled through it, and found themselves in the Gryffindor common room. It was a cozy, round room full of squashy armchairs.

Percy told the boys to stay as he led the girls to their dormitories. When he came back, he led the remaining boys through another door, where they found a spiral staircase. Every now and then there would be a door, and a few first years would enter into it. At the top of the stair case was the door waiting for Harry.

Going through the door, he found six four-posters hung with deep red, velvet curtains. Their trunks had already been brought up. Too tired to talk, they all pulled on their pyjamas and fell into bed.


	7. Life at Hogwarts

Whispers followed Harry wherever he went. People lined up to see him leave or enter his classes, and some would even double back in the corridors so they could get another look at him. It was very distracting for Harry; he had a hard enough time getting to classes.

Neville told him that there were one hundred seventy-four staircases in Hogwarts. It seemed right, but it was hard to tell, because things and places in Hogwarts liked to move around a lot. Staircases shifted constantly; some would lead to a different corridor on Fridays, and others would only be there two days out of the week. Harry sometimes wondered where they went.

Breakfast at the Great Hall also proved a shock for Harry, at least initially. Right when he was in the middle of his bacon, hundreds of owls flew in and started circling the tables, dropping packages. Harry was surprised to find himself receiving a letter from Violet on his first day, telling him that the Dursleys had locked up her owl and asking if she could keep Hedwig for a while. While Hedwig nibbled Harry's ear, he scribbled "Sure" on the back of her letter and gave it back to Hedwig, not giving it a second thought.

Another big shock was the lack of boys' restrooms. There seemed to be a lack of girls' ones as well, and it was only when Harry was getting desperate his first morning when Percy told him that all restrooms at Hogwarts were co-ed. It was very embarrassing at first, knowing girls were coming and going in the same place you went, but it was not too hard to get used to. You just went in, did your stuff, and went out.

The classes at Hogwarts were fascinating, although difficult. There was a lot more to magic than just waving your wand and saying a bunch of words. Every Wednesday at midnight they went up to the Astronomy Tower to study the stars and planets. Three times a week they went to a greenhouse behind the castle to study Herbology with the Hufflepuffs. Neville seemed to really like this class in particular, and on their first day received praise from the teacher, Professor Sprout, for correctly identifying dragon manure, and its properties.

Professor Flamel, their History of Magic teacher, was very old – over six hundred years old, in fact. He wrote their history book, and was a very animated teacher, sometimes re-enacting historical events in class. There was never a dull moment with Flamel.

Professor Flitwick, the Charms teacher, was a little, old man who was very excitable, and had to stand on a pile of books to see over his desk. At the start of their first class, he took the roll call and fell over in excitement when he reached Harry's name.

Harry had been quite right to think that Professor McGonagall was not one to cross. She was very strict, and swore that anybody who was caught fooling around in her class would leave and not come back.

The class Harry and Ron were looking forward to most was Defence Against the Dark Arts. Professor Vicius was brilliant, but his classroom always smelled strongly of garlic. Everyone said it was to ward off vampires, which Professor Vicius was deathly afraid of. It seemed likely, as they left their first lesson with homework on vampires, identifying them and ways to keep them at bay. Professor Vicius said that all classes were doing this, and that it was a bit above what first years were supposed to do, but it was so interesting that not many complained. Neville, it turned out, had met Professor Vicius before. Neville's parents had worked with him on some occasion, mostly Auror stuff that Neville was not told about.

About three days into school, Harry asked Apollon in the common room why they never saw each other in classes. As it turned out, there were so many students that houses were split up, and Apollon just happened to have his classes at different times than Harry, Ron and Neville. Harry thought it was too bad, as they did not even share a dorm room.

Friday was an important day for Harry and his friends. They had finally managed to make it to the Great Hall without getting lost once. This was an especially difficult task for Neville, who was a bit forgetful.

"What have we got today?" Harry asked Ron as he put some eggs on his plate.

"Double Potions with the Slytherins," said Ron.

"Professor Snape's head of Slytherin house," said Neville. "I hear he favours them."

"I wish McGonagall favoured us," said Harry. McGonagall was head of Gryffindor house, but it had not stopped her from taking away house points when Ron, Neville and Harry managed to show up late the day before – not to mention the huge pile of homework they received.

Just then, the mail arrived. Hedwig had not shown up since Harry lent her to Violet, but this time she toppled between the sugar bowl and the butter, and dropped two letters into Harry's lap. Tearing the first one open, he read:

_Harry,_

_How's everything at Hogwarts? The Dursleys have been just awful ever since you left. I hardly ever get a free moment at home. On the plus side, I now know that I don't have to work too hard at school, so I've been staying up late reading. Did you know book stores in Diagon Alley take mail orders? Anyway, I want to know all about your first week, so you better write back soon!_

_Your Wonderful Sister,_

_Violet_

Making a mental note to write back and ask what she meant about book orders and reading, Harry opened the second letter:

_Dear Harry,_

_First Years get Friday afternoons off, so would you like to come and have a cup of tea with me around three? I don't have a class then, and I want to hear all about your first week. Send us an answer back with Hedwig. _

_Hagrid_

Harry borrowed Apollon's quill, scribbled "Yes" on the back of Hagrid's note, and gave it to Hedwig, saying, "Now remember to go back to the Owlery so I can send Violet something."

It was lucky that Harry had tea to look forward to, because the Potions lesson turned out to be the worst thing that had happened to him thus far.

The Potions classroom was in the dungeons, and thus, was far colder than up in the main castle. The walls housed all types of strange pickled animals and organs, which gave the room a very creepy aura.

Snape, like Flitwick, started the class by taking roll, and like Flitwick, paused at Harry's name.

"Ah, yes," he said, "Harry Potter. Our new _celebrity_."

A few of the Slytherins sniggered. Snape finished calling the names and looked up at the class. His eyes were black like Hagrid's but instead of warmth, they were cold and empty.

"You are here to learn the subtle science and exact art of Potion making," he began. He spoke very quietly, but like Professor McGonagall nobody had trouble hearing every word. "Since there is little foolish wand-waving here, many of you will hardly believe this is magic. I don't expect you will really understand the beauty of the softly simmering cauldron with its shimmering fumes, the delicate power of liquids that creep through human veins, bewitching the mind, ensnaring the senses…I can teach you how to bottle fame, brew glory, even stopper death – if you aren't as big a bunch of dunderheads as I usually have to teach."

More silence followed this little speech. Looking around, Harry saw Hermione Granger on the edge of her seat, looking as though nothing would make her happier than proving she was not another dunderhead. Malfoy was there, smirking as if he had the class all figured out. Dudley sat in the back of the room, his bottom drooping over either side of the chair, as he picked his nose. In the front of the room, strange and slightly creepy looking, Alex sat with a huge grin plastered on his face. Otherwise, most of the students were downright oozing nervousness, and it was enough to make Harry forget he had ever touched a Potions text before this.

"Potter!" said Snape. "What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?"

_Wait, huh?_ Harry glanced at Ron and Neville who looked as stumped as he was, while Alex still had his creepy grin. Hermione Granger seemed to know the answer, as she frantically waved her hand in the air. The question had caught him off guard, and Harry found his mind completely blank.

"Well, Potter?" said Snape.

Harry's mind went back to the potions book Violet got him. And he remembered.

"Draught of the Living Dead," said Harry.

"Well, well," said Snape. "And what is the difference between monkshood and wolfsbane?"

Harry remembered this one with no problem.

"Nothing, they're the same plant," said Harry.

"Hmm," said Snape. "Want to show off, do you? Don't be so arrogant, Potter. That's two points from Gryffindor. And you will end your sentences with _'sir,'_ when you address me, is that understood?"

Harry felt himself getting hot.

"I _said_, is that understood?" repeated Snape.

"Yes, sir," said Harry, looking down. He wanted nothing more than to disappear into the ground, to escape the Slytherin sniggers coming from the other side of the room. Dudley, who was all the way in the back, was invariably the loudest.

"And why aren't you writing this down?" shouted Snape. The dungeon suddenly filled with the sounds of scratching quills.

Things later progressed as smoothly as one could expect. Snape had them break up into pairs and set them to mixing up a simple potion to cure boils. Ron and Neville paired together, and Harry was left to choose Alex.

As they worked, Snape took to crooning as he criticised everyone, except Malfoy and Alex, whom he seemed to like. Actually, Harry noticed that his pairing with Alex seemed to confuse Snape. He kept opening his mouth to say something, but then stopping as he looked at Alex. He would then throw a sneer at Harry.

However, this did have a drawback as Snape would comment on how wonderfully heated Alex's cauldron was, and how he must be gifted to have managed it despite "Potter" being in the way. Snape's favouritism for his house was very obvious. When Dudley's cauldron started smoking purple fumes, he merely waved his wand and cleared it up. But when Ron's started sparking, he took away house points for adding the horned slugs too early and left him with his cauldron still sparking.

"So," said Alex, while Snape was inspecting Hermione's potion. "Did you not listen when I told you to be sorted sensibly?" His voice was calm, and not accusing or angry. Harry could not tell if he was teasing or not.

"What's wrong with Gryffindor?" said Harry.

"A few things," said Alex, although he did not elaborate on what those things were. "I understand, however. Perhaps you didn't want to be in the same house as Draco and your cousin."

"Yeah, it was mostly my cousin. But that Malfoy certainly doesn't seem nice either."

"He's not," said Alex, "at least, not to those he thinks are inferior. He was trying to make _friends_ with you on the train. However, his tact…well…it's not the best in the world. He has a bit of an inferiority complex due to his family, so he probably wants to show everyone he's worth something." Alex paused, looking thoughtful. "There's something else. You may not know this, but Draco believes Muggle-borns to be beneath him. And he also despises what we call blood-traitors, pure-blood witches and wizards who willingly socialize with Muggle-borns and Muggles. The people in your compartment were all pure-bloods who fit that description – all except one, a Muggle-born. Very lucky I caught him, I was sure he was going to say something nasty, probably about the Weasley."

"What's wrong with Ron?" said Harry, a little more forcefully that he meant to. Professor Snape gave him a sneer and returned to Dorian's potion.

"I don't know because I don't know him," said Alex. "But that won't matter to Draco. The point is, Harry, that he's going to eventually get to you when nobody is there to stop him, and he will come off as insulting and stupid as he tries to win your friendship. Do try to control yourself. You don't want him as an enemy. His family has an awful lot of clout, both in the Government and Hogwarts. Although–," he paused, seemingly in thought, as he added the porcupine quills to the potion, "I suppose it's inevitable. You're in Gryffindor, you'll eventually act like one."

Harry grunted at this comment but did not say anything. He would stand up to Malfoy if there was a problem. That's what any Gryffindor would do, and there was nothing wrong with Gryffindors.

As they left the dungeon, Harry's spirits were noticeably subdued.

"Well, that wasn't _too_ bad, was it?" said Ron.

"If you're a Slytherin, no," said Harry. "Did you see how much Dudley's cauldron was smoking? And he didn't so much as criticise him!"

"I'm sorry, Potty, if your friends aren't as good as I am," came a snobbish voice from behind.

"Sod off, Dudley," said Harry.

"And why should I? It's a bit late for your first beating, but I'm sure we can make up for it."

"You better leave him alone!" said Neville.

"Yeah!" echoed Ron.

"Potter!" said another voice. It was Malfoy.

"I never got to finish talking to you on the train," he said.

"Hey," said Dudley. "I was busy here!"

"Oh, shove off," said Malfoy. "Did you get hit with a bad engorgement charm, or do you just need to go on a diet?"

This was proving to be very interesting. Malfoy, according to Alex was not nice at all, and Dudley was just unpleasant. It was difficult to tell who to root for. Even better, Malfoy must not have had a good opinion on Dudley, since Dudley was a Muggle-born.

"What did you just say?" said Dudley. Harry was getting downright excited now.

"What are you, fat and stupid? You heard what I said."

_WHACK!_

Dudley's fist collided with Malfoy's nose, and an unpleasant cracking sound echoed the halls. Malfoy flew backwards from the force of the hit, and hit his head on the wall.

"Stupid git," said Dudley, clenching his fist.

"Woah, Dudley, nice job," said Harry. Dudley looked up and did not say anything. In fact, he seemed to be looking too high to be looking at Harry or his friends.

"And what is this?" said an icy voice from behind them.

"Detention, Potter," continued Snape. "Or do any of you other brats want to own up to this?" He looked around, and then settled on Dudley.

"Dursley!" he yelled. "Who did this?"

A smirk formed on his fat face as he said, "They all did, sir. Those two held him back while Harry punched him."

It was a horrible mockery of what happened. Dudley was accusing Harry of exactly the kind of things that were done to him by Dudley and his gang! Harry could feel his anger rising.

"That's not true!" shouted Ron.

"Yes, you would say that," sneered Snape. "I believe your brothers have been known to do similar things. Detention, all of you. At three. Today. You'll be spending it with Mr. Filch. I hear he has a penchant for those Muggle torture devices."

"Bu-but, you can't," said Neville, slowly. His eyes were quickly moving back and forth. He was probably very nervous.

"And why can't I, Longbottom?" spat Snape.

"We – we have te–," Neville stopped for a moment then continued, "we have detention with Professor Hagrid today at three."

"My, my, my," said Snape. "Getting into a lot of trouble already, are we? Well, I'll go confirm this, and you three will have your detention with Filch tomorrow. And if I find out you're lying to go do something like – go to tea – you will wish you had never been born!"

They left Snape and went towards their common room.

"The nerve of him!" yelled Ron. "Giving us detention! And that Dursley!"

"Yeah, but did you see him put Malfoy's light out?" said Neville. "That was a great punch."

"That punch got us detention," replied Harry. "And I hope Hagrid backs us up on that. I'd hate to see Snape's face if he finds out we lied."

"Hey!" called a feminine voice from down the hall. "Where have you been? I haven't seen you!" Victoria came running up to them, her robes billowing behind her.

"Hey!" said Neville. "Sorry, I guess we just haven't been paying attention."

Victoria rolled her eyes. "Typical boys," she said. "Although I guess there's something to be said about the first boys I get practically naked in front of."

Harry blushed furiously at this, but he was the only one who did besides Victoria herself.

"Anyway," she said. "You want to go hang out with me in the Ravenclaw common room?"

"That sounds all right," said Ron, "but we have to leave before three. We have a fake detention with Professor Hagrid."

"Fake detention?" asked Victoria.

"Long story," said Harry.

As they followed Victoria, they told her all about what happened.

"Oh, that horrible man!" said Victoria. "At least we don't have him. We have Professor Termon. Tough luck you didn't get her, she's great."

Ravenclaw Tower was on the west side of the school. It seemed about as high as Gryffindor Tower, just on another end. Reaching a door, Harry said, "So, what's the password?"

"No password," said Victoria. "It asks you a riddle."

Harry turned to mouth the word _riddle_ at Neville, who looked confused too, but before they knew it the door they were standing before opened, and they all slipped inside.

"You'll probably need me or another Ravenclaw to help you each time. The riddle changes often, you see."

As they walked in, Harry noticed the room was round just like the Gryffindor common room. It was an airy room, with many windows hung with bronze and blue curtains, giving a beautiful view of the mountains around Hogwarts. The carpet was dark blue, and looking up, the ceiling was domed and painted blue with stars on it.

"And this," said Victoria, "is a statue of Rowena Ravenclaw, the founder of Ravenclaw House." She indicated a statue opposite the entrance.

"This place is really…thought provoking," said Ron. "I feel smarter just standing here."

Harry chuckled and walked further in the room, looking around. There were many people Harry did not recognize, and one that he did.

"Alex!" called Harry.

"Oh, hello, Harry," said Alex, who was standing next to another guy with rather long brown hair and brown eyes. "Didn't know you had any friends in Ravenclaw," he said. "This here, is my friend William Albert Watson the Fourth."

The boy named William smiled and said, "Most people just call my Billy."

"That's very nice now, William, but I'm afraid that is a silly name," replied Alex.

"I don't see _you_ going by your full name!"

"'Alex' is not a silly name. And isn't your brother's name 'Alex' as well? Do you give him a hard time?"

"No, but he doesn't bother me about my name either."

"Okay, guys," said Harry, "I'll leave you two alone then."

"I'll see you, Harry," said Alex, who then continued to argue with Billy over names.

"Here we are," said Victoria, leading them to an empty table surrounded by chairs. She sat down, and everybody followed her lead.

"So, tell me, how's your week been? It's been great for me. All of the teachers are wonderful. Well, I guess I have gotten a better pick of them, but still…. What do you guys think of Professor Flamel? He seems fun, doesn't he?"

"He seems off his rocker," said Ron.

"I think so too, Victoria," said Neville, looking apologetically at Ron. "Did you see his impression of Agrippa? It was great! He really makes history come alive."

"Considering he is history," said Ron. "What's he doing living past six hundred anyway?"

"He has a Philosopher's Stone," said Victoria. "It makes gold out of anything, and makes the Elixir of Life. He can live as long as he wants with it."

"Wicked," said Ron. "You think he'd let me borrow it? I never have any money." He looked down at his second-hand robe, a bit depressed.

"Cheer up, Ron," said Harry. "You can't go visit Hagrid if you're all down."

"Can I come?" said Victoria. "I have nothing to do here."

"Sure," said Harry. "In fact, we better get going now, it's almost time. Do you guys mind if I invite Alex over too? Might as well make an event of it."

"I don't know Harry," said Ron. "There's already an awful lot of people."

"It'll be fine," said Harry.

oOoOoOo

In the end, Harry got his way. Alex, for his part, reacted nicely to the invitation and accepted – maybe a bit too formally for Harry's taste, but nothing to worry about. Alex said goodbye to Billy, having just finished an argument over milk (_Milk's delicious; there's nothing wrong with it! – No, it's just cooled, processed mammary fluid. Does that sound delicious to you? – You may have a point there._) and followed the group out of the Ravenclaw common room.

After leaving the castle, the group made their way across the grounds. Hagrid lived in a hut at the edge of the Forbidden Forest.

"So, Victoria, have you seen Apollon lately?" asked Neville.

"Yeah, I speak to him often. He has a different schedule than you, you know."

"Yeah, we found out about that a few days ago," said Ron.

"Here we are," said Harry.

When he knocked they heard a frantic scrabbling from inside and several booming barks, along with Hagrid's voice going, "Back, Fang. Back!"

"I very much dislike dogs," said Alex.

"Good, then you can leave," growled Ron. "I still don't know why you had to bring him," Ron whispered to Harry. "He's a _Slytherin_!"

"I'm right here," said Alex, looking at Ron. "I can still hear you."

Victoria giggled and Ron's ears went pink. "Yeah, well, don't pay attention so much," said Ron.

"That doesn't make any–"

But Alex was interrupted by the door being pulled open. Hagrid's huge face beamed at them all, and he led them inside where they saw an enormous black dog tied to a leash on the wall of the hut.

There was only one room, but it was a good sized room. Hams and pheasants were hanging from the left side of the ceiling, and a copper kettle was boiling on the open fire. In the corner stood a massive bed with a patchwork quilt covering it.

"Brought some friends did you, Harry," said Hagrid still beaming. "Well, make yourselves at home." It was then that Fang managed to break off the wall and headed straight for Alex. As soon as he got to him, he started licking Alex's face and whimpering. Clearly, like Hagrid, Fang was not as fierce as he looked.

"Ugh," said Alex. "I don't like dogs," he said again, while Fang exposed his stomach for a belly rub, "but they always seem to like me."

"Too right, you are. I've never seen Fang act like that to a complete stranger before, at least, not since he was a puppy," said Hagrid. "Sorry about that though. He keeps breaking off the wall when he's excited. I'll have to try something stronger soon."

He then went over and pulled Fang off Alex, and dragged him by his leash back to where he was before. With a mutter of _"Reparo"_ Fang was restrained once more.

"So, who're all these friends, Harry? I see you've already managed some – er – inter-house relations." He looked uncomfortably at Alex when he said this.

"This is Ron," said Harry, pointing at Ron. "And that's Neville, and over there's Victoria. We all sat in the same compartment on the way over here. There was another one, but we don't see him often – er – well…Victoria does, but we don't." He added that last part when Victoria gave him a glare.

"And you met Alex at the robe shop," finished Harry.

Hagrid gave out a grunt and turned to Ron. "So," he said, "another Weasley? I've spent half my life chasing after your twin brothers. They keep going into the Forbidden Forest. Always getting into trouble those two. And speaking of trouble…." He looked at Ron, Neville and Harry. "I hear you're having detention with me right now? Why'd you go and say that? You're lucky I covered for you."

They started off with telling Hagrid the events leading up to their first detention with Filch (whom they were surprised to hear Hagrid call "that old git"), and for another half hour everybody told Hagrid about their first lessons, usually taking turns if they had different professors or classes.

"She's great," said Victoria. "Professor Termon's really nice, always willing to help anybody in Potions if they have a problem. She was a Hufflepuff apparently, and it really shows. I think she's my favourite teacher!" Victoria beamed.

"Yeah, and we got Professor Snape," said Ron bitterly.

"Bah, you shouldn't worry too much about it," said Hagrid. "Snape hardly likes anybody."

"He seems to really hate me," said Harry. "He kept glaring at me all through potions."

"Rubbish! Why should he hate you?"

Yet when Hagrid said this, he did not quite meet Harry's eyes.

"How's your brother Charlie?" Hagrid asked Ron. "I liked him a lot. He was great with animals. Got himself a NEWT in my class he did!"

Harry wondered if Hagrid changed the subject on purpose. While Ron told Hagrid about Charlie's work in Serbia, Harry picked up a piece of paper that was lying on the table. It was from the _Daily Prophet_ which seemed to be a wizarding newspaper.

LATEST ON GRINGOTTS BREAK-IN

Investigations continue into the break-in at Gringotts on 31 July, widely believed to be the work of Dark wizards or witches unknown. Gringotts goblins today insisted that nothing had been taken. The vault in question, Vault 713, was searched and had in fact been emptied earlier the same day. "But we're not telling you what was in there, so keep your noses out if you know what's good for you," said a Gringotts spokesgoblin this afternoon. Officials are still unsure if this latest break-in is at all related to another recent high-security break-in at Feltumps Wizard Bank in Germany.

"Hagrid," said Harry. "This break-in happened on my birthday. Isn't that weird?"

Hagrid coloured slightly and said, "Sure, Harry. I'm sure it's nothing too important though. After all, nothing was taken."

"I guess you're right," said Harry. "Hagrid, what was taken at this other break-in – the one in Germany?"

"I heard about that one," said Neville. "My parents got called in to investigate it. Nothing was taken there either. Apparently the contents were transferred to Gringotts…the same day. What vault did you say was searched?"

"Vault 713," said Alex, reading the clipping himself.

"Woah," said Neville. "My parents said that's where the contents of the vault in Germany were transferred to. Oh, but I shouldn't have told you that." He grinned at his last comment.

"Now listen," said Hagrid, "you don't want to be meddlin' too much in things you shouldn't be meddlin' in." He seemed to be getting flustered.

"Oh, come on, Hagrid," said Ron. "It's not like it's all that important. You said so yourself."

"That's right, I did."


	8. The Meeting

…_and then he gave us detention with the caretaker, Filch! It was horrible. He made us clean the bathrooms without using magic. It wouldn't have been that bad except he kept charming the dirty tiles to run away from us._

_Anyway what have you been doing with Hedwig? Why didn't you tell me about the mail-orders? You're not up to something are you? You haven't even gotten to Hogwarts yet. It'd be bad if you were already getting into trouble. Write back soon, Vi._

_Harry_

Harry sent off his first letter to Violet. It contained everything that happened that first week, as well as descriptions of his new friends. He hoped Violet was doing okay being all alone with the Dursleys. It had taken him a bit longer than he thought to write it, but he hoped she would not mind too much. He did include a lot of information after all.

As the week went on, Ron and Neville were becoming increasingly excitable. Flying lessons were starting on Thursday, and it seemed that half the first years were dying to get on a broom. The happiness subsided in Gryffindor house, however, when they found out they were to learn with the Slytherins.

"Wonderful," said Harry. "Just what I've always wanted, to make a fool of myself on a broomstick in front of Dudley."

"You won't make a fool of yourself," said Ron. "No more than he will anyway. I'll be surprised if the school brooms can even support him."

Neville laughed at this, and ended up dripping milk out of his nose.

"But it's such a big deal here," said Harry. "I don't know what I'll do if I'm rubbish at flying."

Everybody from wizarding families talked about Quidditch constantly. And since Quidditch was played on a broom, Harry felt that he needed to be at least passable to keep on the good side of his peers. He would hate to be a wizard who could not fly.

Even Ron and Neville spoke about Quidditch often. Ron would always tell anybody who listened about the time he had almost hit a hang glider on one of Charlie's old brooms. Neville, for his part, was a bit more modest, but did say he had had a lot of practice at home (and told a story about almost hitting a Muggle aeroplane). It was a lot better than Seamus Finnigan though. The way he told it, he spent most of his life on a broom and would be the best flyer Hogwarts had seen since Morten Hall – whoever that was.

Hermione Granger seemed to be the only one more nervous about it than Harry. This was something she could not learn out of a book, but that did not stop her from trying. At breakfast on Thursday she kept reciting flying tips she had gotten out of a library book called _Quidditch Through the Ages_. Even Harry did not care to listen to them, and he was very glad she was interrupted by the arrival of the mail.

Hedwig stepped down in front of Harry and laid a letter into his porridge.

"Hey," said Harry. "What did you do that for?" Hedwig only gave him an apologetic look and ruffled her feathers. Opening the letter, Harry read:

_Harry,_

_Hogwarts sounds wonderful! I can't wait to get there myself, not least of all to get away from the Dursleys. They're so horrible. _

_I'm afraid there really isn't much going on here apart from that. I'm failing all of my classes at school, but really, what does that matter anyway? It feels quite good actually. At school, I don't have anymore worries. No more Dudley, no need to worry about grades or punishments. I can do almost anything I want really. Now, if only I could get Mrs. Figg to take me away from the Dursleys every now and then. I'll have to send her an owl soon. _

_Oh, and don't worry. I'm not getting into too much trouble. Sorry if Hedwig's a bit tired, I've been using her a lot since your last letter. _

_And about the mail-orders…sorry, that's a secret! You'll find out eventually though. _

_The Best Sister in the World,_

_Violet_

"Who's writing to you?" said a voice, as the letter was snatched from Harry's hands.

"Give it back, Dudley," said Harry, reaching over from his chair as Dudley stepped back.

"I didn't know the fat pig could even read," came another voice. Malfoy strolled up towards Dudley, his wand in his right hand. He was also followed by another boy, although Harry did not know his name.

Before Malfoy could make his way to Dudley, Professor McGonagall caught up to him. Harry was glad. Professor McGonagall would not punish him and his friends unfairly.

"I hope there's no problem here," she said, looking at Malfoy's drawn wand.

"No, Professor," said Harry, "but Dudley's got my letter. He took it from me."

"I was just looking," said Dudley, handing the letter back. He was putting his sweet and innocent front up. Harry hoped it would not fool McGonagall.

"Next time you should get permission before you look," said McGonagall. "And put your wand away, Mr. Malfoy, and get to class. The same to the rest of you. We don't want you to be late."

They turned to leave, but not before the boy with Malfoy gave Dudley a burning look. Harry wondered who he was.

oOoOoOo

At half past three, Harry, Ron, Neville, and the other Gryffindors hurried down the front steps onto the grounds for their first flying lesson. It was a clear, breezy day, and the grass rippled under their feet as they marched down the lawns toward a smooth flat plane, far away from the Forbidden Forest.

The Slytherins were already there, and there were over twenty broomsticks lying in neat lines on the ground. Harry had overheard a few people complain about the school brooms, mostly about how they started to vibrate if you went too high, or too fast, or "tried to do anything remotely interesting" as the Weasley twins put it.

Their teacher, Madam Hooch, finally arrived. She had short, grey hair, and yellow eyes like a hawk.

"Well, what are you all waiting for?" she said. "Everyone stand by a broomstick. Come on, hurry up. Good. Now stick out your right hand over your broom and say 'Up!'"

"UP!" everyone shouted.

Harry's broom jumped into his hand at once, but it was one of the few that did. Hermione Granger's had simply rolled over. Ron's had smacked him in the nose, and Neville's seemed to keep rising and falling, never quite making it to his hand. Dudley's, Harry was glad to see, just sat there.

Madam Hooch then showed them how to mount their brooms without sliding off the end, and walked up and down the rows correcting their grips.

"Now, when I blow my whistle, you kick off from the ground – hard," said Madam Hooch. "Keep your brooms steady, rise a few feet, and then come straight back down by leaning forward slightly. On my whistle…three – two – one!"

The whistle blew, and everybody more or less did what she said. Dudley, however, seemed to be realising Ron's prediction, and was unable to get far off the ground.

"Lose some weight for goodness sake," said Draco as he caught sight of Dudley, while Madam Hooch was away inspecting the Gryffindors on the other end. The field echoed with stifled laughter and Dudley grew red.

After everybody touched back down to earth, Madam Hooch explained the basics of steering. After lecturing for a few minutes she said, "Now I want everybody to get into pairs and fly five laps, following this line." She pulled out her wand and traced an oval in the air. On the field, a golden line followed her motions, and when she was done, the students were left with a short golden ring to follow.

Harry partnered with Ron, and an unlucky Neville had to fly with Malfoy, who lost out on other Slytherin partners.

"Not too slowly, everybody," said Hooch. "And you two there, stop smashing into each other. This isn't Quidditch."

Neville and Malfoy continued banging into each other, each trying to knock the other off their broom. Malfoy seemed to be winning before Hooch called for a stop.

"That's enough," she said. "And didn't I say to stop that?" she added towards Neville and Malfoy.

"If any of you want to try out for Quidditch, now's the time to say so. The Slytherin and Gryffindor Quidditch captains have set dates aside for it, and one of you might be lucky enough to get put on reserve, although judging from the flying I just saw…." She shuddered. "And if you don't want to try out, then off with you. Class dismissed."

Neville and Ron made their way to where Harry was standing.

"Either of you want to try out?" asked Ron. "Who knows? We could make it – might even play if somebody gets smashed in the head."

"That's a terrible thing to say," said Hermione as she walked by.

"Can't you mind your own business?" said Neville. "He was just talking; he didn't mean anything by it."

"Hmph," said Hermione, and she walked briskly towards the castle.

"What's up with her anyway?" said Ron.

"Not a clue," said Harry. "Anyway, Ron, I don't think I'm up for trying out."

"Yeah, me neither," said Neville. "Perhaps I'll wait 'til next year."

"I suppose you're right," said Ron. "It'd be great though, wouldn't it? Even being on reserve. Imagine actually making the team though!" His voice was filled with awe as his eyes glazed over.

Neville snapped his fingers in Ron's face a few times. "Snap out of it," he said. "There hasn't been a first year on the team in fifty years."

Ron came back to reality. Quickening his pace towards the castle he said, "Yeah, but a bloke can dream can't he?"

oOoOoOo

The next morning began with another letter. This time however, it was delivered by Elladora.

"I thought the Dursley's locked you up," said Harry, removing the letter.

_Harry,_

_Guess who showed up yesterday morning in my hut? Violet said your Aunt and Uncle wouldn't let her keep her owl in the house, so she sent the owl to me, still locked in its cage. I want you to use her every now and then to give her exercise. Violet neglected to mention her name, so I hope you know. _

_Hagrid_

Harry wondered if Violet still needed Hedwig now that Elladora was free. Probably not.

"Who are you getting so many letters from, Harry?" asked Neville. "You get almost as much as Malfoy there."

"Just my sister," said Harry. "She's all alone with my aunt and uncle. It must be horrible for her. Violet and my aunt never really got along, you see."

"What about your uncle?" asked Ron, his mouth full of sausage and bacon.

"He's too busy bossing me around to pay attention to her. It's like they divided the torture between them. Uncle Vernon gets me. Aunt Petunia gets Violet."

"They sound worse everytime you talk about them," said Ron. "Don't worry, Harry, you can come over for the holidays whenever you need to – your sister too. Mum won't mind." Ron guzzled down the rest of his pumpkin juice. "You can come too, Neville."

"Thanks, Ron," said Neville, "but we usually travel during the summer."

"Excuse me," said a voice from behind them.

Harry turned around. Standing in front of him was an older Slytherin boy with a pointy face, and bright blue eyes. He was quite thin and stood very tall and straight, reminding Harry of Greek pillars.

"My name is Cepheus Malfoy, and I am here on account of my brother. It seems he's having a hard time getting you alone, so I'm here to invite you to the Slytherin common room." He paused a bit to roll his eyes and grumble something that sounded like "He owes me for this" before going on. "Do you accept? Draco would be so disappointed if you didn't." Again, he grumbled something, this time sounding like "As if I care."

Harry glanced over to Ron, and then Neville. Both of them looked confused and shrugged.

"I guess I'll go," said Harry. "What time?"

"I think he said eight-thirty," said Cepheus. "I'd wager going a bit earlier, just in case."

"All right then," said Harry. "I guess that's settled."

"Great," said the older Malfoy, sounding not too pleased at all. "I'll tell Draco the good news."

As Cepheus walked back towards the Slytherin table, Ron and Neville let out sighs.

"I hope you know what you're doing," said Neville.

"So do I," replied Harry. He pushed his plate away, suddenly not feeling very hungry.

oOoOoOo

"I hope you all remember to stir correctly," said Snape, pacing as usual through the dungeon.

"Do you have any idea what he's talking about?" asked Ron. Snape did not seem to want another problem with partners, so this time everybody had to stick to their own house.

"I think we need to stir clockwise only," said Harry, waving his hand through the billowing smoke coming from the cauldron. "So I think you should start stirring the other way before he comes back."

"I don't think it'll matter," said Ron, switching the way he stirred. "Our cauldron's the only one going off like a chimney."

"Weasley! Potter!" said Snape, turning around suddenly. "That will be five points from Gryffindor for failing to read directions."

Harry had to nudge Ron when he started making certain comments about their potions Professor.

"That'll be another ten points and a detention, Weasley," said Snape, glancing over while inspecting Malfoy's cauldron. He was partnered with that boy he was with in the Great Hall again. Harry hoped he had not found a friend. The last thing he needed was another Malfoy-type to bother him, even if his interactions with Dudley were interesting (but dangerous!).

"That will be all, everyone. Bring a sample of your potion to my desk with your name and leave," said Snape. "Except for you two," he said, glaring at Harry and Ron. "You'll both be receiving failing grades for today's class. I encourage the rest of you to pick your partners carefully. Picking a Potter will definitely get you nowhere in this class. A Weasley is not much better."

Malfoy and some of the other Slytherins sniggered. Seething internally, Harry grabbed Ron and stormed out of the classroom.

"I wonder if there's somebody you could complain to," said Neville, meeting them outside. "Maybe Dumbledore could do something."

"That won't work," said Ron. "If it could, why hasn't someone approached him before?"

"Maybe everybody else had exactly that same idea as you," said a female voice walking past them. Hermione turned around and stopped in front of them. "You could try going to McGonagall. She is our head of house, you know."

"It's bad to butt into other people's business, you know," said Ron. "We don't ever get into your business, do we?"

"Then I'll try not to get into yours anymore," she said, as she quickly turned around and started storming towards the library.

"What's up with her?" said Neville. Shrugging, he started walking, followed by Ron.

As he was about to follow them, Harry was stopped by another familiar face. It was turning into quite the tradition, being pulled aside by people after Potions.

"Harry," said Alex, giving a formal nod. "I heard Draco finally got you to himself. Sometime tonight? Is that true?"

"Yes," said Harry, wanting to join Neville and Ron up ahead. Knowing so many people was getting to be annoying.

"You remember what I told you?" Alex said, his eyes staring straight into Harry's. "Yes."

"Would you like some company when you talk to him? It might help things along."

Harry did not know what to think of this offer. It probably would be a good idea, but how would Malfoy take it? He had even gotten his brother to set a time to meet up alone.

"I guess that'd be good," replied Harry, after some time.

"Wonderful," said Alex. "Well, I'll let you get along to your other friends. Do you know what time it is that you're too see Draco?"

"Sometime before eight-thirty."

Alex suddenly gave a shuffle. "Ah. Well, I'll make sure to look for you coming in. I'll see you then, Harry."

And with that, he walked off. Harry had no idea where Ron and Neville had gone off to. Running up to the Gryffindor common room, Harry thought about this newest predicament.

oOoOoOo

"I don't know why you trust him," said Ron. "He's probably going to gang up on you with Malfoy! Before you know it, they'll have you cornered and alone in the Slytherin common room, defenceless."

"I think you're exaggerating the situation, Ron," said Neville. "I must admit though, why would he offer to be with you when you talk to Malfoy?"

"He's going to jump you!"

"Guys, I think it's okay," said Harry. "Even you, Ron, have to admit that he helped out on the train. I think he just doesn't want Malfoy making a fool of himself in front of me. He's probably doing it more for Malfoy than me."

"Can't get much worse for Malfoy than getting knocked out by your cousin," said Ron.

"That's true," said Neville. Glancing at his watch, his eyes rounded. "You better get going Harry, it's almost time!"

"You know, I don't even know where the Slytherin common room is."

Harry watched his friends shrug before he walked out the portrait hole. Standing there waiting was Cepheus Malfoy.

"It's about time. I thought you might have gotten lost getting out of your own common room." He gave a slight sneer at Harry. "Come on then. Let's get this over with." He gestured for Harry to follow him. Harry followed.

oOoOoOo

"Always Pure," said Cepheus, and the wall opened up. Harry walked in, and found himself inside the Slytherin common room.

The room was located in the dungeons, behind a solid stone wall. Harry did not think he would be able to find this place again. Dudley must have had a heck of a time, as "smart" as he was.

"It's taken you a long time," said Alex as Harry entered. "I was starting to think you got lost."

"That's what I said," said Cepheus. "Anyway, you're on your own now, Potter." Sneering again, he walked away towards what must have been the dorms.

"Well, shall we go then?" asked Alex. "Draco's currently playing a game of chess. I'm sure he's losing, so it should be no problem waiting for him."

As they walked, Harry noticed just how depressing the common room seemed. Everything was dark and dank. The room had low ceilings and everything was made of hard wood and green cushions, making things look excessively regal as opposed to warm or inviting.

"Checkmate," said the boy across from Malfoy. "Draco, why do you play this game? You're absolute rubbish at it."

"Oh can it, Burkley," said Malfoy, swiping a hand through his hair. A couple of girls a few paces away giggled. "There are more important skills than just playing chess," he continued. "Skills you definitely lack, and I – well, I have them in spades."

Harry heard a groan coming from the distance at this, and saw that it came from Dudley. He did not say anything more, and Malfoy did not seem to notice (the boy named Burkley did though). Harry supposed this is how it would have to be, or else they would be fighting each other all the time here. He also thought that something must have happened to cause some sort of peace between them. Dudley usually did not back down from small weak people who insulted him, and Draco did not seem the type to back out either.

Draco finally noticed Harry. "Harry Potter," he said. "Finally, we can talk." Glancing at Alex, Draco said, "You can leave, Alex. We don't need you here."

Alex seemed totally used to this sort of comment, as he replied, "I disagree. I won't be a bother, I'm sure. Your father would like it if I stayed too."

Malfoy seemed to think for a moment. "Whatever," he said. "Burkley, get up. Make room for our guest."

Burkley rose from across Malfoy, and Harry sat down in his place, noticing that this was the boy Malfoy had been hanging around with since yesterday. Alex sat next to Harry, and Burkley was shooed away by Malfoy.

"So, Harry Potter," said Malfoy, sitting up straighter. "You've been getting really chummy with some interesting people. That Longbottom…Weasley…and Halcyon here…. You've done pretty well without any sort of guidance. But...you've slipped…that _Thompson_." He sneered the name like it was some sort of expletive. "Maybe you think she's attractive, but even then, you could do better. You should replace her with someone more _pure_."

"Ahem," said Alex. He looked slightly annoyed. "If I may say something, I don't think–"

"No, you may not say something," said Malfoy, clearly straining to keep his voice down. A few other Slytherins glanced in his direction. "This is exactly why you shouldn't be here."

Something seemed to snap in Alex. His face suddenly got very hard. Harry had never seen him like this.

"No, Draco, this is exactly why I should be here. You constantly forget that not everybody thinks purebloods are automatically superior."

"You're not turning into a Mudblood lover are you?" asked Malfoy.

"Don't jump to conclusions," said Alex. "You want Harry as an accomplice. You're not going to get that by outright insulting his choice in friends."

"I can speak for myself," said Harry, getting angry himself. He hoped that the three of them were not going to get in trouble. One of the Slytherin prefects was hovering around, obviously oozing to take points away from Harry.

"You want to talk to me," said Harry, looking at Malfoy. "You want me to like you, and the first thing you do is insult my friend. I can be friends with whomever I want." Harry turned his head to look at Alex and said, "And I can take care of myself."

"You're going to regret that, Potter," said Malfoy. "You don't seem to understand that some wizarding families are better than others. And making friends with Mudbloods…." He scoffed. "You're going to end up just like them when the Dark Lord comes back."

"Harry," said Alex slowly. "I think it's time that you got back to Gryffindor Tower."

"I think so too," said Harry. He just wanted this day to end. Why he ever agreed to this he had no idea.

"Yeah, get out, Potter," said Malfoy. "Go back to your blood traitor friends and your Mudblood girlfriend. I don't know, maybe she has some…_perks_ I'm not aware of." His face had a feral grin as he said this.

"Why you…," said Harry, reaching for his wand. Just as it came out from under Harry's robes, however, the Slytherin prefect who had been waiting around finally spoke up.

"Potter," he said, sounding very pleased, "that will be fifteen points from Gryffindor for attempting to hex a fellow student while a guest in another house's common room."

"Just leave," said Alex. "You'll only make it worse if you stay here longer."

Realizing the truth of Alex's words, Harry tore for the exit. As Malfoy's words echoed in his mind, Harry seethed inwardly at the insult. Stepping through the door in the wall, he bumped into Dudley, who was making his way back in.

"Watch it, Potter," he said. Suddenly all the anger Harry was feeling boiled up to the surface.

"Why don't you watch it?" said Harry. Harry did not know many hexes yet, but now was the time to get creative.

Once again, Harry's wand started travelling out of his robes. And once again, as soon as it got out, Harry was stopped. This time, Dudley's fist collided with Harry's nose. Harry heard something snap, but it was not his nose, as there was no accompanying severe pain. It was his glasses again.

"Stupid Potty," said Dudley, walking through the door as it closed behind him.

_This is great,_ Harry thought. _Get insulted, lose house points, and get beat up. What a night._Harry looked down at his broken glasses. He wished he had some tape or something. He would have to try to get by without them for a while. Somebody in the common room would know how to fix them.

A short time later, as he was slumping towards Gryffindor Tower, Harry suddenly came to a realization. He was out after curfew. He could end up losing even more points and getting a detention. Harry quickened his pace. As long as he did not get caught, he would not get in trouble.

A few minutes later, he stopped. Somebody was coming.

"I see you," Filch said quietly. "Come out now, and maybe I won't shackle you to the ceilings."

Harry did not stop to think how Filch knew he was there and ran for it.

"Don't make this harder on yourself," Filch called.

Harry ran up blurry staircases, through murky corridors, and back down other blurry staircases. Somehow, Filch always seemed to beat him to wherever he was headed. Harry had heard that Filch knew the secret passages of Hogwarts well, but he had no idea that there could be so many, or that they were so conveniently placed to catch wandering students.

Just running around was not working. Harry found the nearest brown smudge, opened it, and ran inside the door.

Harry pressed his head against the oak to listen for Filch.

"I hope nobody's hiding in here," said Filch. He was right outside the door! "Hmm. This door is supposed to be locked. Better lock it."

Harry heard some muttering, and the lock on the door clicked. Retreating footsteps were heard next, followed by laughing.

"I sure hope nobody was in there," said Filch, cackling madly. Harry listened to his laugh getting further away and dying down.

Thinking the coast clear, Harry tried to open the door back up. It did not budge. Filch really had locked the door!

Turning around, Harry saw something. It was blurry at first, like everything else, but Harry continued to stare, squinting and getting closer to make it out. When he found out what it was, he wanted to scream. But thoughts of immediate death stopped him – or maybe it was his hands clamped over his mouth.

Inside the room with him was what looked like a gigantic three-headed dog. Luckily for Harry, it seemed to be sleeping. Was it that late for dogs?

Harry walked over and tried opening the door again. As quickly and quietly as he could, he tried over and over again. It was no use. Harry slumped down against the door. If he was quiet, he would not wake the dog. But how long would it be before it woke up on its own?

oOoOoOo

Harry considered himself lucky. Squinting at his watch, he noticed that an entire hour had passed and he was still alive.

Repositioning himself to be more comfortable, Harry suddenly heard something. There was movement outside the door…and voices. He could handle detention, so long as he avoided death.

"Did you find him?" said a familiar voice.

"Not yet," said a second one.

"Who are you looking for?" said a female.

"Why are you even here?" said the second voice. Harry recognised it now. It was Ron and Neville! They were looking for him. But who was the girl?

Harry started tapping at the door. He still needed to be quiet. Harry then began whispering as loud as he comfortably could at the door, trying to get his friends' attention.

"Hey, do you hear that?" said the girl.

"Oh no! It's Filch!" said Ron, obviously panicking. "We're all going to be expelled!"

"Ron, they don't expel you for being out late," said Neville. "We'll just get another detention."

"I don't fancy another one of those either," said Ron.

"Quiet, you two!" said the girl. "It's not that. It's – it's coming from that door."

Yes! They heard him. Harry was beside himself. He was going to live!

"That door?" said Ron. "How do we know it's not a trick? It might be Peeves."

"It's not Peeves. It's me," said Harry. The dog behind him grunted and started to shift. Panic filled Harry. Glancing behind him the head on the right started opening its eyes. It blinked sleepily for a moment - and then it was awake.

"Now I know you heard that," said the girl. "Come on, somebody's trapped behind that door."

The three-headed dog lunged for Harry. Driven entirely by instinct, he managed to dive out of the way in time. The dog hit the door, and Harry screamed for help.

"Harry?" said Neville. "Come on guys, it's Harry! And he's in trouble!"

"Help me!" said Harry, doing his best to get out of the way of the dog again. It was no use. One of the heads grabbed on to Harry's robes, and another almost bit Harry's arm off. Ripping away from his cloak, Harry ran for the door, which was now open thanks to his friends.

As soon as he got through, it took all four of them to shut the door with the dog pressing up against the door as it tried to get out. As it closed, they continued to watch the door rattle. Snapping sounds emanated from the other side for several moments before they finally stopped. Everybody sighed.

"Harry, mate, you're not going to make a habit of this are you?" said Ron, seemingly on the verge of fainting.

"Don't bet on it," said Harry, exhausted. "You have no idea the night I've had. How did you know to come find me anyway?"

"We waited for a long time, and you never came back," said Neville. "And Ron thought something might have happened."

"And what's she doing here?" said Harry, pointing at Hermione.

"_She_ is here to keep these two from losing any more house points," said Hermione. "We've lost enough already thanks to you and Ron in Potions."

"Hey, nobody asked you to come," said Ron. He glanced around. "And let's get back. I'd hate to see Filch's face if he catches all of us at once. He'd think Christmas had come early."

"Yeah," said Harry. He rubbed his arms slowly, glad they were still attached.

"You going to tell us how you ended up locked in a room with a three-headed dog?" said Neville. "It's kind of scary actually. You could have died." He whispered the last part very quietly.

"Yeah," said Harry, equally quiet. "But I'm okay – thanks to you guys." Hermione gave a huff at this. "You too, Hermione."

Hermione paused for a moment. "Well, you know I tried," she said. A few seconds passed. "Now we know why we should keep away from the third floor."

Ron turned to look at her, as if she was crazy. "What do you mean? What's on the third floor?"

"We're on the third floor. Remember, that corridor is supposed to be off limits ," said Hermione. "But why is that thing here in the first place?"

"Oh, uh…," said Ron.

"We could ask Hagrid," said Neville. "He _is_ the Care of Magical Creatures Professor."

"There's an idea," said Hermione. "I've never met him before. Do you think he'd know?"

"Why don't you go ask him and tell us what he says," said Ron. Harry got the idea that Ron was being sarcastic, but the way Hermione tended to act….

"I think I will," she said.

"Well, whatever you do," said Harry, yawning, "don't wake me up too early tomorrow. Near death tires a bloke out." Harry chuckled. It was good to be alive.


	9. Halloween

A/N:

Today is totally not Sunday. Unfortunately I was sick all day Sunday and basically slept that day away. On Monday I got this chapter ready and was going to update it, but FF decided it was going to be sick that day and not allow me to upload anything. So sorry about the huge delay. This weeks Chapter won't have one unless again, something terrible happens...

* * *

The dog incident was the most terrifying thing Harry had ever encountered in his short life. But he survived it, and because of that it became more of an interesting topic of discussion rather than the horrible tale than Harry knew it really was.

Hermione actually did ask Hagrid what such a thing was doing in the castle, and secretly, Harry was not surprised with Hagrid's response.

"He just told me it was none of my business!" said Hermione. "As if something that dangerous wouldn't concern us students."

Harry, Ron and Neville completely agreed with Hagrid. Neville and Ron did not care much, and were mostly interested in never seeing that dog again. Harry definitely was not too eager to be reunited either.

Harry's other regular friend was much more interested in "why" however. Victoria took to speaking to Hermione often about it, and even asked Hagrid herself. She did not get a different answer.

Alex apologized profusely for the trouble in his common room. After Harry told him the problems he had afterward, he only apologized more. Despite his efforts, Harry still was not going to set foot in the Slytherin common room any time soon.

The Ravenclaw common room was a different story. It was a lot better than the Gryffindor common room if only because nobody had any problem at all with Alex spending lots of time there. He was probably trying to get away from the dungeons himself, Harry thought. Harry did try inviting Alex and Victoria to Gryffindor, but it never went through. It was not a big problem though, as Neville and Ron did not mind Ravenclaw tower. In fact, Harry suspected Ron liked it too, as it lacked Hermione.

Harry continued to write to Violet, switching off between Elladora and Hedwig. The owls seemed to be getting less and less exhausted as the weeks went by. Harry suspected Violet was not using them as much with…whatever it was she was doing.

oOoOoOo

Before Harry knew it, it was already Halloween. Walking down to the Great Hall, Harry was greeted by the sweet smells of baked pumpkin pies and eyefuls of colourful candy.

Their Defence Against the Dark Arts class that day was one of the best yet. As soon as one got over his fear of vampires, Professor Vicius was a very interesting teacher. Before getting into the main topic of the day he would sometimes go off on an interesting experience he once had and he did so that day.

"And that's that," finished Professor Vicius. Ron raised his hand.

"Professor, how many spiders did you say there were?" Ron's face was noticeably pale when he said this and his voice was shaky.

"Only about five hundred or so, Mr. Weasley," replied Professor Vicius.

Harry barely believed it when Ron's face paled even more. Harry was positively blushing compared to the white Ron's face now displayed.

"Okay, Professor," said Ron, unmoving.

It was the first time Harry had ever heard that Ron was afraid of spiders. Having grown up in a broom cupboard, Harry was used to them. It was almost strange to think that somebody could be scared of them. They did not really _do_ anything.

"Okay, everybody, now to business," said Professor Vicius, running a hand through his hair.

"Have you all been reading up on the Stiff-joint Jinx?"

Of course, everybody had. It was the first time they were going to actually be able to cast offensive spells at each other.

Seeing everybody's nod of approval, Professor Vicius went on. "Great. I'm going to pair you up, and you'll practice on each other, except we'll be ignoring the Stiff-Joint Jinx for now, and focus instead on the Itching Hex. You should all have read how the hex works, and I expect everybody to be able to cast it successfully at the end of class."

There were a few moans throughout the class. The Itching Hex was a lot less interesting, but it was still considered an offensive spell.

Students in Defence Against the Dark Arts were never allowed to pick their partners, but were paired up by Professor Vicius instead. Harry turned out to be lucky; he was paired up with Neville while Ron was made to partner up with Alex. It made Harry want to laugh to see that of the two only Ron had a problem with this. Another interesting pairing was Hermione with Draco Malfoy. It was like Professor Vicius knew who would not get along, and with the exception of Harry, created pairings to go with that.

"Begin," yelled Professor Vicius.

"You go first, Harry," said Neville.

Harry was uncertain about this. Slowly he raised his hand and tried his best to mimic the peculiar slashing motion he read in the book. With a shout of _Gyccio_, it worked…sort of. A light blue bolt flew out of Harry's wand and hit Neville in the arm. Neville gave a slight shudder and rubbed the spot where Harry hit him.

"I think you need to put more power into it," said Neville. "It stopped itching very quickly."

"Why don't _you_ try it then," said Harry, a bit more forcefully than he intended.

Neville shrugged and began to raise his wand. Just as the incantation began to cross his lips, he was hit by a stray jinx.

Harry whipped around thinking it was cast by somebody with malicious intent, only to find Ron looking dumbfounded.

"I didn't mean to!" he said, looking at Harry. "I just kind of…missed."

"I'll say," said Neville, shrugging the jinx off. Apparently, Ron's power was not that much better than Harry's.

"You need to stop slashing where you want to hit," said Alex. "You just kept going so you missed very badly."

"Okay, Mr. Slytherin, let's see how it's done. But if you hit any of my friends, you'll be sorry!"

Alex bowed, and quicker than Harry could see, hit Ron with the hex. Or at least it looked like it.

Ron did not even flinch; he did not seem affected at all. Suddenly, he started laughing. Alex stood there as Ron laughed, waiting for him to stop, it seemed.

"Did it actually work?" asked Neville.

Ron started gasping for breath in between laughs. "I didn't feel a thing," he said. "Who would have known you would be so weak?"

Harry glanced around. While Alex certainly did the worst, nobody else was faring all that well either. Hermione seemed frustrated, both at Malfoy for sending quips at her, and her own inability to retaliate with a good itching jinx. Dorian Summer and Seamus Finnigan were missing as badly as Ron. And Dudley, to Harry's surprise, was aiming well, but having about as much effect as Alex.

"That's enough, class," said Professor Vicius, glancing at Ron who was still getting over his laughter. "By now I'm sure you've all realised how hard it is to get this jinx to actually make somebody itch all over for any real length of time. That's because this spell isn't really offensive. It's for practice. Practice for students like you: young, inexperienced, and magically weaker than adults. I want you all to write twelve inches on increasing magical power and reasons why it's important in defence. Class dismissed."

Harry quickly exited the classroom and waited for his friends. Neville was right behind him, having lagged a bit to get his book. Ron quickly followed Neville and they were off. The Halloween feast was soon, and Harry had no intention of missing it.

"Why is it labelled offensive in the book if it's only for practice?" said Neville. Harry shrugged.

"What is with that Halcyon?" said Ron as he trailed behind Harry. "So he can aim – that doesn't change the fact that he's a slimy Slytherin!"

"Ron, he's right there. I'm sure he can hear you," said Neville.

Harry looked back. It did not look like Alex had heard Ron – or at least, he gave no indication of it.

"Let him hear!" said Ron, shouting.

Neville ducked down, trying to avoid the stares that were coming their way. "One of these days," he said, "you're going to get us in some sort of trouble with that mouth."

"Oh, come on, Neville," said Ron. "He _is_ in Slytherin. And what kind of trouble could a few truthful comments bring?"

"You never know," said Neville.

oOoOoOo

As Harry walked down to the Main Hall, the smell of pumpkin was unbelievable. Accompanying it were a myriad of other smells: candy apples, roasted nuts, apple and pumpkin tarts, as well as less holiday vested foods like glazed ham and baked potatoes.

The food was not even the most amazing part. Thousands of live bats flew above their heads, hundreds of floating carved pumpkins with candles in them were aglow, and steaming cauldrons were present on the table holding what smelled like cider. It was an amazing sight.

Sitting down with his friends, Harry began to eat. He was halfway through his roast chicken when he started to feel funny. Harry felt his palms grow clammy, and his brow sweat. Harry felt rather hot, and wet. He now wished he hadn't eaten any food, as his stomach would not sit still. His mind felt foggy, like something was invading, making it hard to think. And suddenly it all stopped. He was back to normal. Yes, no little food poisoning could make _the_ Harry Potter sick, he thought to himself.

Harry went back to his chicken. Yes, it was nothing, he was definitely fine now, but things _were_ getting a bit boring anyway.

Harry turned and looked at Ron, then Neville. They were staring each other down, and with a flurry of motion, wands exited their robes. All across the hall students were hexing each other, while others were trying to calm everything down. Harry quickly dodged an _Expelliarmus_ sent his way by a Ravenclaw fourth year, which hit Ron in the face. How _dare_ he hit Ron! Harry had no idea what it did, but it was still a spell, and Ron was still his friend. Both Harry and Neville charged towards the fourth year who now had his back turned, and jumped on him. Their combined weight caused the student to fall. Harry's fist collided with the boy's face. No need for wands now.

"STOP THIS INSTANT!"

The voice boomed throughout the great hall. It was Dumbledore, his wand held up against his throat. The rest of the professors, minus Snape, Vicius, Termon, Flamel, and one other Harry did not know, had their wands raised against the students.

Dumbledore's voice continued to echo across the hall. "I want everybody to do nothing. Nothing at all! None of you are in your right state of mind. Now I want you to kindly all – no, Mr. Malfoy, not now." Draco Malfoy had his hand up, meekly looking up wanting to speak.

"Don't even speak, any of you," continued Dumbledore. He turned and muttered something to Snape, who said something back.

"We're all just going to sit here for about an hour. I'm sorry but it must be done. No one may ask any questions, either."

Harry hated it. He wanted to march right up and curse Dumbledore with the most powerful thing he knew – or at the very least punch him in the face and make his obviously previously broken nose worse. But he could not disobey Dumbledore when he was giving such a command.

Harry continued to sit there, seething in fury. Snape and a few other professors left to attend to some other thing. Still Harry sat, except he was not so angry anymore. He was beginning to wonder how he could ever think of punching the headmaster. Or how could he have punched that fourth year for such a silly reason? Why had he done it in the first place? Why had the entire room gone crazy?

Snape returned and whispered something in Dumbledore's ear.

"That's about enough everyone," he said. "I'm again very sorry but will everyone please return to their _own_ common room. Prefects, please stay. Everybody else, up you get."

Nobody said a word of protest. Harry quickly followed his friends up the staircase and to the Gryffindor common room.

"What was that?" said Ron. They had been in the common room for a while now, and silence had finally been defeated. The ordeal had shaken everybody up, but curiosity had now found its way into the common room.

"I have no idea," said Neville. "Did you all feel it though?" he continued, "I mean, I felt…really mean. It occurred to me to just jump in and use any sort of force to get whatever jumped into my brain. Like when you got hit, Ron…I felt like I would have used an Unforgivable if I knew how."

Ron paled and nodded. Harry suddenly felt sick. How and why did everybody turn like that?

Suddenly, Percy came through the portrait hole, his face full of purpose. Harry wondered for a second where the other Prefects were. "Listen up, everyone." he began. "There's no easy way to say this so I'll just say it: Hogwarts was attacked."

Gasps of shock and yells of outrage rang through the room. Percy held up his hands in an attempt to calm everyone.

"Quiet down now. We don't know why, but we do know that somebody put Realignment Draught into the food before the feast. When ingested, this potion will morally reverse the subject. That is, a normally good person will become very bad, and a normally bad person will become very good. In a sort of sick way, we should be thankful that almost everybody turned bad." Percy gave a slight chuckle. Nobody else did. "Ahem, yes…anyway, the potion was detected by both of our Potion masters and our two Defence Against the Dark Arts professors – and Dumbledore and Flamel of course. While Dumbledore prevented us from killing ourselves, the other professors not under the influence went to see what happened and that is all you need to know."

The room erupted into questions.

"I'm sorry, but that's all for now. Go to bed now," said Percy, desperately trying to wade back through the crowd and flee. As soon as he was free, he went back through the portrait hole and was out of sight. Nobody followed him.

The questions did not stop though.

As other students asked each other questions, Harry listened to his friends. "Why do you reckon it was done?" said Ron. "I mean…nobody got hurt did they? Percy didn't say so."

"Maybe somebody did and they want to keep it down?" suggested Neville. "But even if somebody really did get hurt, the majority of us are fine. If there was going to be a real attack on the school, why do it this way? Whoever did it must be really stupid."

Ron shrugged. "Still, it did ruin the feast. I'm still hungry."

"You're always hungry, Ron," said Harry. "I'm going to listen to Percy. I'm tired."

"Listening to Percy, mate," said Ron. "That'll get you nowhere."

Harry waved him off and went up the staircase to the dormitories.

His nice soft bed was waiting for him, and it seemed he was not the only one who wanted to sleep. Dorian was there, and after a few moments both Neville and Ron entered, walking towards their beds without a word.

Harry did wonder though. Why was it done? Was it just to scare the school? Who would do such a thing? Percy's explanation only left more questions. Harry was swimming in them now.


	10. Gryffindor VS Slytherin

A/N:

Yep, it's still Sunday. Anyway, I apologize for the shortness of this chapter. I was going to combine it with the last one, but I forgot. Oh well. The next chapter should make up for it, trust me.

* * *

Shortly after Halloween, the attack on Hogwarts appeared in _The Daily Prophet_, a wizard newspaper. The journalist who wrote it was equally curious as Harry and his friends about the motive. Not in the paper, however, was the death of the three-headed dog on the third floor.

"Hagrid, what's wrong?" asked Harry, during another visit to the giant. Hagrid had called him and all of his friends over for "something important."

"It's Fluffy!" he said through huge wails of anguish. "He was killed!"

"Who's Fluffy?" asked Neville.

"Fluffy was the three-headed dog you ran into, Harry," said Hermione. Apparently she had gotten her own, separate invitation since she was not really friends with Harry. It seemed that Hagrid had taken a liking to Hermione, even after she pestered him with all those questions about Fluffy.

"Oh," said Harry. He was not feeling too sad to be honest. The thing could have easily killed him.

"He was such a good dog!" said Hagrid. "So gentle! You just played him a bit o' music and he went right off ter sleep!" Another great cry and Hagrid pulled out what looked like a picnic blanket from his coat, and blew his nose.

"When did he die?" asked Ron.

"Halloween," said Hagrid through his sobs. "I knew it was dangerous making him guard the stone, but I thought he could handle it! I didn't know he'd get killed!"

"Guard the stone?" said Alex.

Hagrid wailed louder than ever. "I shouldna told ya that!" he bellowed.

Nobody said anything after that. They all just sat around Hagrid as he cried, and when they were told to leave, they did so. Harry wondered what the point was. Did Hagrid just want some company for his mourning?

oOoOoOo

As November rolled around, the weather turned very cold. The mountains around them were icy grey and the lake had completely frozen over. Every morning the grounds would be covered in a thick layer of frost.

The Quidditch season had finally begun. On Saturday, Harry would be watching his first ever Quidditch match: Gryffindor versus Slytherin. It had been a long time since Harry had been taught the game. It was shortly after they had learned of Fluffy's death that Ron tried to talk to Harry about Quidditch again.

"You know I don't know anything about Quidditch, Ron," said Harry, in response to again being asked about favourite teams.

"But you have to know something," he said. "Like how to play?"

Harry shook his head.

"Blimey, Harry, I didn't know anybody, even Muggleborns, who didn't know about Quidditch. After a few months here I figured it would come up."

"Well, uh...I never really asked about it when I heard about it to be honest," said Harry.

"Well then, I'm just the one to teach you!"

oOoOoOo

It was not that hard, when you got right down to it. It was kind of like football – except in the air. There were eight players on each team which included: four Chasers who scored with two large slow-falling balls called Quaffles, two Beaters who carried bats and tried to keep three iron balls called Bludgers away from their team and towards the other team, and a Keeper who protected his team's hoops. The only thing Harry found really odd was the Seeker. Apparently there was a very small golden ball called the Golden Snitch that awarded fifty points to the catcher's team. Only the Seeker could catch it, and it was very small and fast. The catching of the Snitch also ended the game

In addition to having Quidditch to think about, homework had also gotten tough. But with Victoria at his side, Harry was usually able to finish it all with enough spare time to be with his friends. Harry was trying really hard to get Ron to get along with Alex but it was proving to be much more difficult than anybody could have guessed.

"He's a Slytherin and that's all there is to it," said Ron. "You should know – your cousin's in there! And so is Malfoy!"

"But Alex is an okay guy," said Harry. "And you know that none of the other Slytherins have bothered us."

"How many have you met?" said Ron pompously.

"I went to their common room."

"So? We all know how that turned out. And that Halcyon is too pale. Somebody that pale has to be evil. Look at Snape!"

Harry groaned. It seemed hopeless.

oOoOoOo

Saturday morning came up rather quickly. It must have been all the homework. Victoria never let them copy ("That's not nice!") her work but she was helpful enough that they got all the right answers without too much fuss anyway.

At eleven o'clock everybody filtered out into the Quidditch pitch. Harry, Ron, and Neville joined Seamus, Dorian Summers, Dean Thomas, and a boy Harry knew to be named Thomas Engels, up in the top row. Hermione joined them shortly thereafter and started talking to Thomas about all the things she had read about Quidditch. Ron rolled his eyes at her, but Harry was actually interested. He still was not sure that he completely understood the game. It was then that Apollon and his sister Artemis made their way to the row Harry and his friends were at.

"Hey guys," said Apollon. "Haven't spoken to you in a good while." He smiled. He had shoved his way past everybody else in order to get next to Harry, Ron and Neville.

"How's it been going?" said Ron. "Excited for the match?"

"Most definitely," said Apollon. "We're both hoping to absolutely crush Slytherin."

"That's right," said Artemis. It was the first time Harry had ever heard her speak.

Suddenly, the crowd began cheering. The teams were walking to the middle of the field, where Madam Hooch was waiting. Harry deduced that she must have been refereeing. It was too far away to hear what she was saying, but she was obviously talking to the teams. A loud whistle started the game and the players took off.

"And both Quaffles have been taken by Angelina Johnson of Gryffindor, one quickly passed over to Chaser Haruka Yamada, obviously also of Gryffindor. But that Angelina Johnson, she certainly is a good flyer, and rather attractive too–"

"JORDAN!"

"It's true Professor – I mean, sorry Professor."

The Weasley twins' friend, Lee Jordan, was commentating, being closely watched by Professor McGonagall.

"And Angelina continues her fancy flying, dodging a Bludger there – Haruka makes a pass to Alicia Spinnet, a good find by Captain, Oliver Wood. Angelina dodges another Bludger and passes – no, Slytherin Chaser Sandra Sylvoc has taken a Quaffle. Off she goes, dodging a good Bludger by Fred Weasley – or is it George? Alicia Spinnet still in possession of the other one, but wait, she passes to new Chaser Katie Bell..."

Slytherin cheers filled the air, with howls and groans from the Gryffindors, including Harry.

"Sandra scores. Katie Bell takes a shot at the posts and – nope, saved by Keeper and Captain Cepheus Malfoy. Now it's Chasers Adrian Pucey and Marcus Flint in possession – no thanks to Slytherin cheating somewhere along the lin–"

"JORDAN!"

"Won't happen again Professor. Sandra dodges a Bludger – oh, but is hit by a second one. Angelina in possession once again and – what's that? Adrian takes a shot but is blocked by Oliver Wood. Gryffindor now in possession of both Quaffles now, and – ouch, that's got to hurt. Cepheus Malfoy has been hit with a Bludger lodged at him by Fred – or George Weasley. The posts are unguarded now and GRYFFINDOR SCORES!"

Now it was Gryffindor's turn to cheer. The match was tied, twenty each side. The game was indeed extremely exciting and now Harry wondered what it would be like if he was out there too, instead of just watching. Flying had given him one of the biggest rushes of his life; what would actually playing this game be like?

"Slytherin scores again," groaned Lee. "That would be now forty to twenty, Slytherin. Slytherin is certainly on top form today but – oh joy, Malfoy is back in the air protecting his posts. I'm sure his team could use the help."

"Jordan, I'm warning you…" said McGonagall.

"What? Oh fine, fine... And we have Adrian Pucey in possession of both Quaffles, racing towards the Gryffindor posts. I don't think he is going to be able to move around well like that but – nope, Pucey hit with a Bludger and there, Slytherin Seeker Brandon Birtch is hit too. No sign of the Snitch yet though. Angelina and Haruka in possession now, and would you look at them go! Haruka dodges a Bludger and a Chaser and she takes a shot and – there's another score for Gryffindor! Angelina's shot is blocked by Malfoy, better luck next time Angelina, you're still number one in my book and –"

McGonagall's growls could be heard, amplified.

"Right, er...and there's a score for Slytherin, excellent for them and – THERE'S THE SNITCH! The Slytherin Seeker is still out cold but Gryffindor's Camille Collet is there in a flash. Let's see if she can pull it off. There's a Bludger blocked for her by George Weasley – or is it Fred – and oh look, Slytherin scores again. Let's see if – YES! Collette has caught the Snitch! Gryffindor wins 80 to 60!

The sound was deafening. Harry cheered as loud as he could with the rest of his House (and other supporters of Gryffindor), trying his best to help overcome the boos and hisses coming from Slytherin and its fans. What a thrilling game!

oOoOoOo

Back in the Gryffindor Common room there was a party. Fred and George (along with a Ravenclaw fourth year Harry didn't know) had somehow managed to bring in several cases of a drink called "Butterbeer" as well as three bottles of Firewhisky. Harry supposed it was for the seventh years.

"Wow," said Ron. "I've always wanted to try Firewhisky. I wonder if Fred and George will let me have some."

"Don't even think about it, ickle Ronniekins," said George from behind them. "Mum would kill us if _we_ tried the stuff."

"Yes," said Fred, appearing from thin air. "And if we let you have any, she'd kill us several times."

"But you, Harry," said George, clapping him on the back. "You can have as much as you want." He shoved a small glass of amber liquid into Harry's hand. "Mum won't kill us if you die."

"Oh no," said Victoria, coming up quickly and swiping the glass from Harry's hand. "We'll have none of that, thank you."

"And what have you got to say about it?" said Fred.

"I'll get Ron here to write to your mum," she said. "I don't think anybody's parents would like it if they were known to have killed The-Boy-Who-Lived through alcohol poisoning."

"It's all right," said Harry. "I was never going to drink the stuff anyway. I'm way too young."

"Exactly!" said Victoria.

"Hmm," said Fred, "on second thought, nothing for you either. Here, have a Butterbeer." Again a drink was thrust into his hands. How were they producing them?

"Not enough alcohol in that to do anything to a human," said George. George suddenly coughed a cough that sounded suspiciously like the word "usually" but Harry couldn't be sure. "But it still warms you up. Anyway, we've got big boy stuff to go do. Right, Fred?"

"Right you are, George!"

And with that they waltzed off together. It was a strange sight. Harry turned to face his two friends, absentmindedly wondering where Neville was. There were so many people to keep track of.

"Hey guys," said Victoria. She was whispering. "I've been talking to Hermione a bit, and we think something big is going on."

"What do you mean?" said Harry. Although now that he thought about it….

"Well, think about it. Hogwarts was attacked - there was a three-headed-dog on the third floor 'guarding a stone.' And it was killed. Obviously something really important is being stored in Hogwarts!"

"Some sort of stone then?" said Harry.

"Exactly! Hermione thinks it's Flamel's Philosopher's Stone, but I'm not so sure. We also think that it has something to do with those two big bank robberies, the one in Gringotts and the one that happened in Germany."

"You and Hermione you mean?" said Ron.

"Yes," said Victoria. "Hermione was thinking of just plain old asking Flamel one of these days, but I think I'm going to just see what Neville knows."

"Neville?" said Harry.

"Yes. Remember, his parents are Aurors! And they know about that particular case. Maybe they, and Neville, know about what was being held there? Or maybe they'd answer if he asked."

"Maybe...if all these crazy theories are right," said Ron.

"Well, you have to admit, something weird is going on around here," said Harry, "but for now..." Harry opened up his Butterbeer. "Let's just celebrate a Gryffindor victory?"

Victoria smiled. "You may have beaten Slytherin, but they are nothing compared to us Ravenclaws. You won't beat us so easily."

Harry smiled back. "We'll see. Right, Ron?"

Ron was extremely enthusiastic in his response; as if there was no question at all that Gryffindor would beat Ravenclaw. "Right!"


	11. Christmas With the Weasley's

November passed by without too much fanfare. Harry was glad to see that the halls were no longer buzzing about him, and gossip was now about completely different topics. One of the big ones throughout November was how many students were angry about not being able to go to a place called "Hogsmeade" due to the attack on Halloween. Harry had no idea what this place was, but it must have been important. Another common topic floating around was the apparent existence of a Ravenclaw girl who had a pet fairy. Harry had never seen such a girl in Ravenclaw tower, and Victoria would never say if the rumours were true ("It's a secret!").

An increased influx of Violet's letters started towards the end of November. As the snow started to pile, so did the letters, mostly urging Harry to come back to the Dursleys' for Christmas. Harry was very worried about it. He wanted to go back to Violet, but he didn't want to go to the Dursleys'. At the same time he hated himself for thinking that, when Violet was stuck with them all year — not to mention the stress over wondering if they would even let him come back. Dudley was obviously invited back, but Harry? The Dursleys would rather boil in water.

"Why don't you just invite her over to the Burrow?" said Ron. "You're definitely invited. Mum already told me to tell you."

"What…really?" said Harry.

"Yeah. Mum won't mind if your sister comes too. Bill and Charlie always brought along a lot of friends, and Fred and George do it over the summer sometimes too."

"I'm sure my aunt and uncle would love to let Violet go too…and Violet would be glad to get away."

"See, it all works out in the end," said Ron.

"What about you, Neville? You traveling this year like you said before?" said Harry.

Neville turned away from his sausages for a moment. "No, actually. Turns out, my parents and I are going to go to a family reunion at my Gran's house. Family only, and I have to be there, but it's not going to be so bad." He turned back to his food.

Harry himself turned to his eggs. They tasted a lot better now than they did just a few moments before.

oOoOoOo

During breakfast the next day, in-between bites of toasts and talking to Ron and Neville, he began a very happy letter to Violet inviting her to the Weasleys' for Christmas. He was sure she'd be happy to go. After all, he was, and she had every reason to want to that Harry did, and more.

_Vi,_

_Guess what! No, don't guess, let me just tell you. My friend Ron Weasley has invited me to stay with him over the winter holidays at his house, and he said you could come too! I'm sure you want to get away from our aunt and uncle. And not to sound too mushy, but I miss you. It'd be great if you came. It would be easy too! All you have to do is tell Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon. They'll probably be glad to let you go, and they have to come out to the station anyway to pick up Dudley. So get excited, Vi!_

_See you soon,_

_Harry_

Harry read it over. It wasn't the best letter he had ever written to her, but it would do. He folded it up and put it in his pocket. He decided he'd send Elladora this time.

oOoOoOo

"Class dismissed," said Snape. "Do try to remember your homework in the midst of your winter frolic." He gave a slight sneer. Harry hadn't seen him in such a foul mood in a very long time.

When Harry, Ron, and Neville left the dungeons they found themselves being blocked by a large fir tree in the corridor ahead. Through the branches they saw two familiar looking shapes telling them it was Victoria and Apollon on the other side.

"Why do you guys have a tree?" said Harry.

"Need any help?" said Ron, poking the branches with his finger.

"Yes, please," said Apollon.

"We were at Hagrid's for tea," said Victoria, pushing the tree to the side to let a few Slytherin students walk by, "and afterwards we volunteered to take this tree down to the Great Hall."

Harry navigated his arms through the branches and helped his friends pick it up. It was a huge tree, although Hagrid probably wouldn't have had trouble with it.

"Excuse me, could you move out of the way," said Malfoy from behind Harry and Ron.

Victoria poked her head out from behind the tree. "There's a path right there. You can fit."

"Nobody asked you, Mudblood," said Malfoy. There was a collective gasp from everyone except Harry. Apollon jumped out from behind the tree and took out his wand.

"My, my," said Snape. "Fighting in the corridors. That will be fifteen points from Gryffindor."

"What!" said Ron.

"Malfoy started it!" said Harry.

"Each," said Snape. "And fifteen from Ravenclaw. Oh, come now, stop the sniffling, it's only a couple of points." Harry had no idea why she was beginning to cry. It was unfair, yes, but it was just points.

"He called me a Mu-Mudblood," said Victoria. Snape turned slowly around and looked at Malfoy.

"Is that true?" said Snape, although he sounded as if he already knew the answer. Malfoy didn't say anything.

Snape sighed. "Detention, Malfoy. You are not to use that word in polite society." Malfoy looked absolutely livid, but still, he didn't say anything.

"Ms. Thompson, fifteen points back to Ravenclaw. The points from Gryffindor still stand. No fighting in the halls. No trees either. Hurry up with that."

Snape ushered Malfoy through the corridor past the tree. Harry was confused.

"What's a 'Mudblood?'" asked Harry. Again the gasps came, although this time they were more subdued. He'd heard the word before, every time by Malfoy, but he never knew it would get anybody worked up.

"Harry!" said Neville. "It's not a nice word!"

"I'll tell you later, Harry," said Victoria, wiping her eyes. "Come on, guys," she continued, "let's get this tree to the Great Hall."

After giving the tree to Victoria's head of house, things seemed to get back to normal. Apollon said he still had to pack a few things for the winter holiday, and headed up to Gryffindor Tower. It occurred to Harry that he too, would need to pack some things, but first thing's first.

"What does...that word mean?" said Harry, not keen on saying the controversial word again.

"It's a bad word," said Victoria. "It means 'dirty blood!' Because I'm a Muggleborn, I don't have good wizard blood!"

"Don't listen to Malfoy," said Neville. "He doesn't know anything. It doesn't matter at all if you're parents are Muggles."

Harry was quite appalled himself. How could anybody say something like that? And Snape, too, seemed to dislike the word.

"It's okay," said Harry. "Neville's right, Malfoy doesn't know what he's talking about. You shouldn't listen to him."

"But," she paused. "Do most purebloods—"

"No," said Neville. "I'm a pureblood, and I don't think like that. Ron, too. Right, Ron?"

"Yeah," said Ron, puffing out his chest, "only scum think like that. All respectable wizards know there's no difference."

Victoria looked like she was about to cry again. "Thanks, guys," she said after a brief pause. "You've made me feel a lot better."

oOoOoOo

Harry hadn't boarded the train yet, although he was excited for the holiday to begin. Not only would he be spending Christmas with one of his friends, he'd be able to see Violet again. Just as he had expected, she was being "permitted" to go as the Dursleys had put it. The letter saying so had arrived that morning and was still in his pocket.

"I'll see you guys after the holiday," said Victoria. Her sisters were behind her saying their own goodbyes to two other groups of students. Harry thought it was strange that the three of them would have completely different sets of friends. "I'd say goodbye later, but my sisters and I want a compartment to ourselves. I'm afraid I won't get another chance to see you." She looked down and smiled. "You've been such great friends," she said. And then she did something rather unexpected. She walked up and hugged Ron, and then Harry. She was very warm, Harry realised. Finally, she hugged Neville too, who, to Harry's amusement, blushed.

"It's not like we're never going to see you again," said Ron.

"Way to ruin the moment," said Neville, still blushing. Victoria turned to Ron.

"I know, but…well, you have been very good friends." Her sisters were done with their goodbyes and were waiting behind her. She glanced over at them. "I have to go now, I'll see you later!"

She and her sisters navigated themselves through the throngs of people and boarded train. Harry turned to his two other friends who were still with him.

"Let's find a compartment," he said, "before there's none left."

The train ride back was uneventful. Ron and Neville sat on one side and played Exploding Snap, which was just like the regular game except with explosions added. Harry spent most of the ride staring out the window daydreaming. He wondered if Violet had changed any, after so many months alone with the Dursleys. Maybe she was a bit taller now that she was in a real room?

Getting out of the compartment was an adventure. The train was simply too small for everyone to make it out without any problems. As they waited for an opening, Harry caught a glimpse of Dudley walking by with his trunk. Harry needed to get out now. If Dudley made it back without Harry, they might leave and take Violet with them. There was no way they would wait for Harry to show up to take her. Or, they might just leave her alone on the platform. That wasn't too bad, except she would be alone and defenceless. If anybody tried to hurt her, what could she do?

Harry forced himself into the crowd, almost knocking a few people over. Harry looked over apologetically at Ron and Neville who had been left behind, but continued forward. Harry had to keep up with Dudley.

It was actually much easier getting out by following Dudley. He was so huge he parted the crowd easily, and all Harry had to do was keep close. Before he knew it, he was off the train, complete with his trunk (he left Hedwig at Hogwarts).

As Harry looked past Dudley, he saw his aunt and uncle, waiting. They were there looking rather lost and confused, and Harry was surprised they were even on this side of the barrier. And right next to Uncle Vernon stood Violet with a large trunk.

Oh boy, was Harry glad to see her.

As they drew closer Uncle Vernon spotted Dudley. "There you are!" he said gruffly. He was noticeably forcing himself to act normal, or as closely as he could, around so many wizards and witches.

"Mum, Dad!" said Dudley. "Did you bring me anything?"

"Oh, of course, dear," said Aunt Petunia patting him on the head. "It's in the car. A nice early Christmas present!"

"Harry!" said Violet, running up to him and wrapping him in a warm hug.

"Violet!"

Harry hugged back enthusiastically. It sure was good to see her again. "How have you been holding up?"

"Much better now," she said slowly. "I'm so glad I get to spend winter break with you!"

"Yes, and you darn well better remember our generosity," said Uncle Vernon. "Come on, Dudley, let's go. Petunia." He motioned for her to follow.

Maybe it was Harry's imagination, but it looked like Aunt Petunia was glaring at Violet in a more hostile way than usual that made Harry feel uneasy. Still, it could have been nothing.

"Harry," said Violet, "when do I get to meet Ron? Where is he?"

"I don't know," said Harry. "I left Ron and Neville on the train, but they shouldn't be hard to find — just look for a ton of red-heads."

And they did so, wandering around, while tugging their trunks behind them as they went. They didn't talk much. Maybe they didn't have too much to talk about, or maybe they were too busy looking around (there were an awful lot of people there). Or maybe it just wasn't the time to catch up.

Harry saw them in the distance. Tapping Violet's shoulder and waving for her to follow, they made their way up to two redheads. As they drew closer though, something seemed to be off. Harry could see that neither of the red-heads were Ron, Percy, or the twins. Getting closer, Harry caught sight of somebody who made him realise his mistake.

"Hey, look! It's Alex from the robes shop!" said Violet. "Are you and him friends, Harry?"

Harry nodded and continued on. Best play it off like he meant to lead Violet to them. Maybe the family had seen the Weasleys somewhere. Alex saw them, as they made their way towards him.

"What brings you here?" said Alex, smiling at Violet.

"You remember me!" said Violet, smiling back.

"Of course I do," said Alex, nodding his head knowingly. "And hello to you too, Harry. Who are you looking for? Your cousin perhaps?"

"No," said Harry, "we're looking for the Weasleys. I lost Ron getting off the train."

"Ah, the Weasleys," said a tall imposing figure behind Alex. He turned to face Harry and said, "I've seen a few here and there, but I don't think they have found each other yet."

"Harry, this is my father, Melanthios Halcyon," said Alex.

"Oh my," said Mr. Halcyon. "Are you Harry Potter, then?"

Harry nodded.

"And who is this young lady next to you? You seem a bit too young to have a girlfriend."

Harry tried to stop himself from laughing out loud. "No sir, she's my sister."

"No reason she couldn't be both."

"Um, yes, anyway…," said Alex. "Oh look, there's Ron right there." Alex was looking noticeably flustered at his father's comment. It was a really strange comment. Of course you couldn't be both. For her part, Violet seemed on the verge of giggling at him.

Harry turned around. Sure enough, there was Ron running up towards them, dodging people, trunks, various animals and nearly tripping over a cat.

"Harry!" said Ron, out of breath. "What was the big hurry? You missed saying goodbye to Neville. And why are you with, uh…these people?"

Ron looked up at Alex's father and seemed more apt to keep his mouth shut about his dislike of Alex.

"Father, this is Ron," said Alex. "I've spoken of him before."

Mr. Halcyon started looking even more imposing at the mention of the name. "Yes, yes you have. It's unfortunate I can't speak to you now, Ron Weasley. Alex, are you ready? It seems your sisters are back."

"Father, could I introduce them to my friends?" Harry took a deep breath of air. He'd never heard Alex call them his "friends" before. Harry would have to try to spend more time with him.

"I suppose, but make it quick."

Harry turned to see them, moving up on his toes to try and see over the crowd. Approaching were two girls who were obviously Alex's sisters, whom he spoke of on the train. Both were very tall. It seemed Alex got the proverbial and literal short end of the stick on height. By no means short, he was only as tall as his noticeably younger sister.

Alex pointed to the younger one and said, "This is Sophitia, and the one behind her is Kassandra." He paused for a moment. "And this is Harry Potter."

"Really?" said Sophitia. "Are you sure? I thought he'd be taller." She was indeed taller than Harry, not by much though.

"Yes, well, we'd love to stay," said Ron, pulling on Harry's arm, "but we need to go."

"As do we," said Mr. Halcyon. "Come now, children. Your mother is waiting."

Ron watched as they left, and as soon as they were out of earshot said, "What were you doing with them? I've been looking all over for you, and I find you with the Halcyons of all people!"

"Relax, Ron. I just got confused because of all the red hair."

"Red hair!" Ron's face was becoming the colour in question. "Weasley hair is nothing like that! It's nowhere near as dark."

"Okay, okay, Ron," said Harry. "You should try keeping it down. And besides, I don't think you're making a good impression on my sister."

"Sister?" said Ron, dumbfounded. He glanced around and his eyes met Violet's.

"How are you doing?" she said.

"Didn't see you there," said Ron. "I'm Ron Weasley," he continued, holding out his hand.

"Violet Potter," said Violet. They were being way too formal, Harry thought.

"Come on then, let's find my family. I saw Fred and George go that way," he pointed towards the back of the station. "Maybe they're all there waiting for us."

They followed Ron, still dodging people left and right. After such a long time, Harry assumed the train station would clear up. Most families were still hanging around, however, as friends were still saying goodbye to each other for the holidays, and parents were talking amongst themselves. A few were also looking around, probably for their children.

"There they are," said Ron, pointing.

A little further away was a gaggle of red heads, all scurrying around, probably looking for Ron.

"There he is, Mum!" said either Fred or George.

They hurried towards the family, careful as they went to not bump into anybody, and to not let go of their trunks.

"Where have you been, Ron?" said the woman who could only be Ron's mother. "You had me scared to death when everybody showed up before you did!"

"Sorry, Mum," said Ron. "I was looking for Harry. We got separated."

"Oh, Harry dear, pleasure to see you again." She looked down at Violet. She stared a bit too long at Violet's clothes, but she quickly composed herself and said, "And you must be Harry's sister! Ron told me you'd be staying too. Oh, it's okay dear, you're not imposing. There's plenty of room for everyone, I think. Violet, you'll be sharing a room with Ginny. Oh, come on, Ginny. Don't be so shy!"

A small red-headed girl was hiding behind Mrs. Weasley, or at least she was until she was pushed out of her hiding spot.

"Hi," said Harry and Violet at the same time. She looked at Violet and then Harry. Her face grew scarlet as she squeaked out a little "Hi."

"Looks like you've got an admirer, Harry," said Fred.

"Yeah," said George, grinning. "Maybe Mum should put you with Ginny instead."

"Your sister can stay with Ron. Ron's too thick to do anything but snore too loudly."

"Hey!" said Ron.

"That's enough, everyone," said Mrs. Weasley. Violet chuckled, staring at the twins.

"Maybe I should stay with you two," said Violet, still staring with a grin on her face.

"Oh ho!" said Fred. "What a grand idea! Can she, Mum? We promise we'll take really good care of her!"

"No," said Mrs. Weasley. "Try not to go along with them, dear. They...take a little getting used to."

"Thanks, Mum," said George.

"Let's get going everyone. Percy, stop daydreaming, we're going."

"Right away, mother," said Percy, grabbing his trunk.

Harry stayed close to Violet as they made their way back to King's Cross, making sure to keep close to the rest of the Weasleys as well. They passed through the barrier with little difficulty and made their way to the curb, ignoring the strange looks from the Muggles. They stopped at the curb, and Mrs. Weasley extended her arm, hand outstretched.

All of a sudden there was a deafening BANG, and Harry had to shield his eyes from the sudden blinding light. Violet, who standing next to him, fell backwards and in an effort to maintain her footing, grabbed onto Harry and pulled him down along with her.

As Harry lifted up his head he saw an amazing sight. A triple-decker, violently purple bus was standing on the edge of the curb, with its door open. Harry got up, shook himself, and extended his hand to help his sister up too.

"The Knight Bus, at your service. Name's Steve Goldsmith and I'll be your conductor for today. Need any help getting those trunks up?"

"Yes, please," said Mrs. Weasley. Steve Goldsmith followed suit, and soon, in a flurry of wand motions and words Harry couldn't catch, all the trunks were hovering above the ground and entering the bus.

"All right, everyone, hop in," said Mrs. Weasley.

Everybody began filing into the bus. Harry and Violet were the last of the children, before Mrs. Weasley herself. Inside, the bus was not like anything Harry had ever seen. Instead of normal bus chairs, there were two-seaters and squashy armchairs.

"Go on then, Harry, take a seat. You can sit next to Ginny there. Violet, there's a spot next to Percy, right there."

Harry looked and saw the seat that Ginny was in. Violet walked over and sat next to Percy, who seemed less than thrilled for some reason. Harry then went and plopped himself where Mrs. Weasley had indicated, next to Ginny.

"All right, Mr. Goldsmith, will you please take us to Ottery St. Catchpole?"

"Right away, ma'am! You heard her, Stan, Ottery St. Catchpole!"

Suddenly there was another loud BANG and Harry was thrown back into his seat. Once he got his composure back, he saw they were now on a completely different street than before. Cars and objects were dodging the bus as it flew across the street following what seemed to be no set pattern. Harry watched the sights for a while, as shops and street lights would fly out of the way, enjoying the novelty.

A few more minutes into it, however, it got boring. Harry turned to the girl on his right.

"Hello," he said. "I'm Harry. Your name is Ginny, right?"

She whipped her head around so fast Harry was surprised it didn't snap. Her face became as red as her hair, and she nodded.

"You start Hogwarts next year?" said Harry.

She continued to look like a deer caught in the headlights for several more seconds before responding a quick "Yes."

"My sister's starting then too." Harry looked over at Violet who was chatting away with Percy, or at him really, as Percy was facing the other way. Harry looked back at Ginny.

"Maybe you'll become friends." Ginny nodded her head. _Maybe not. Violet's way more talkative,_ thought Harry.

Harry looked over at Ron who was sitting between Fred and George, both poking fun at him while Mrs. Weasley berated them. Harry wondered how long the ride would take. He was very excited to see where Ron lived.

Harry looked back again. Ron was now sitting with his mother, while Fred and George were by themselves, plotting who knows what. Ron seemed even more unhappy with this arrangement, as Mrs. Weasley was doting unabashedly upon her son, something that was probably more embarrassing than any torment from his siblings. Harry wasn't sure though; he'd never been doted on by the Dursleys.

Suddenly, the bus made a huge swerve, and Harry was flung into Ginny's lap. He flushed, finding himself in such an awkward position, as Ginny squealed and stiffened. Harry quickly got up and straightened his clothes, trying to act like nothing weird happened. Suddenly there was another swerve, and this time it was Ginny who was flung into Harry. She squealed again, and again, Harry flushed. He grabbed the sides of the seat to prevent himself from being flung anywhere again. Ginny quickly got up and returned to her side of the seat, her face madly crimson.

The bus stopped with another loud BANG, but luckily Harry didn't fly anywhere. He was amused to see that Violet had though, landing on the floor on her stomach in front of Percy, who looked honestly worried as he helped her up.

The conductor gave a bow and said, "Here you are, Ottery St. Catchpole. Have a good day, everyone. Make sure to bundle up!"

As Harry walked out with his trunk in hand, he realised the advice was more important than he thought. It was a lot colder than what it was back at King's Cross, and a thick layer of snow covered the ground.

"All right, everyone," said Mrs. Weasley. "Let's get a move on."

Harry found Ron and walked with him, while Violet continued to walk next to Percy. Ginny was with her mother and the twins were with each other, as always. Nobody said anything, as it was too cold to really talk. As they walked, Harry's excitement continued to build. A Christmas away from the Dursleys. A Christmas with the Weasleys, where he wouldn't be treated with outright dislike. Maybe he could even have fun!

"Here we are," said Ron, and Harry saw it. The house looked extremely mismatched, as though it was just a stone pig pen at first, and extra rooms had been added here and there until it was several stories tall, and extremely crooked. There were at least four chimneys sticking up from the roof, smoking merrily, and near the entrance there was a lopsided sign that read THE BURROW, which was covered in snow. The inside of the house was glowing, which was an inviting contrast from the thick snow outside.

"It's not much," said Percy to Violet.

"It's amazing," she said.

"Well now, everyone, head on in — it's freezing out here. And Violet, Harry," Mrs. Weasley said as she looked around uncertainly, "if you really want different rooms, I suppose it'll be okay, so long as you get permission first."

"Ooh, here that, Gin?" said Fred. "Just think, being in the same room as Harry Potter." Ginny blushed crimson yet again, glowing against the background of white.

They started making their way into the house. "I think I'm okay," said Harry.

"Yeah, I was just joking," said Violet.

"We must not have turned on enough charm, Fred," said George.

"Alas!" said Fred. Violet laughed some more, as she and Harry, followed by Ron and Percy, entered The Burrow.

oOoOoOo

Harry had just finished putting his stuff up in Ron's room, when he turned to his friend. Ron stood there, shuffling his feet. He looked up at Harry, then back down again. "It's not much," he said, "but you know...it's what we've got."

Harry looked at his friend. "It's excellent, Ron. I've only been here a few minutes, and I can already tell."

As Harry walked down the stairs, he was met by a quick red blur running into him and knocking him down.

"Sorry, Harry," said Violet. Harry picked himself up and helped Violet up too, looking her over. She looked different. She was wearing a nice pair of Muggle jeans and a green jumper. The surprising thing was that they both fit perfectly.

"Where'd you get those clothes?" asked Harry.

"Bought them," she said. "There's a shop in Diagon Alley that specializes in Muggle clothes. They didn't do mail orders so I got Mrs. Figg to take me. Took a while, but I got her to help me eventually."

"Mail orders?" Harry vaguely remembered Violet mentioning it earlier in the school year, but hadn't given it much of a second thought.

Violet ran a hand through her hair, ruffling it up more. "Yes. Bought lots of books that way, along with some other things…."

"Other things?" Harry could hardly believe it. "Violet, remember what Hagrid said! That money should be for our school."

"What, I can't have clothes that fit?" Violet started raising her voice, a sign that things weren't going to go well for Harry if he pressed on. _Best say nothing and let it pass_, he thought to himself.

"It was only a couple books! And everything I've bought besides the clothes is education related! I haven't just been wasting it on plastic ponies and dolls!"

"Uh…," said Ron at the top of the stairs, "am I interrupting?"

"No," said Violet, turning away and rushing down the stairs.

"Sisters," said Ron, shaking his head. All Harry could do was nod his head in agreement.

oOoOoOo

Harry was right to call Ron's house "excellent." The holidays were turning out to be better than he could have imagined. The Burrow was one of the most enchanting places Harry had ever been to, with all sorts of wonderful things peering around every corner. And all of these things combined in a way that prevented the house from ever being really quiet. Explosions coming from Fred and George's room were so common that nobody took notice. A ghoul above Ron's bed would bang pipes and groan if he thought the house was too quiet, and Harry was startled to find his reflection talking back to him his first morning at the Burrow.

The beginning was a little rough though, in the conversation department. Ron's younger sister Ginny always behaved awkwardly around Harry, stumbling and stammering whenever he was around. Ron said she usually was nothing like that, but Harry wasn't sure until Violet echoed the remarks (once she started talking to him again, after he did some apologizing). After two days, Violet wouldn't stand for any more.

"Talk to him," she said, pushing Ginny out of her room while Harry was walking by. She dashed out quickly, slamming the door shut behind her, and holding Ginny's shoulders so she couldn't get away. Ginny found herself face to face with Harry, who was feeling very confused. "Er, hello," he said, giving a glance at Violet who had a look that clearly said "Leave and you'll die."

Ginny's face suddenly flushed with a redness that rivaled the reddest tomato, and Harry suddenly got the idea that her head might explode from the pressure. Swallowing, Harry said the first thing that came to his mind in this awkward conversation.

"The step at the bottom of the stairs creaks."

Ginny continued to blush as she nodded and Violet rolled her eyes. "Oh, get over it!" she said, pushing Ginny into Harry, knocking them both to the floor. She quickly darted down the stairs, stepping on the creaking stair Harry mentioned earlier.

Ginny scrambled and picked herself up, Harry soon to follow.

Rather than scurrying away immediately Ginny just looked around like a trapped mouse before finally saying "Hi" back.

Harry didn't really know what to do. It was so awkward, and he'd already said hello to her.

"Hi," said Harry again. "I'm going to go...you know, downstairs. Breakfast and all that." Ginny nodded and Harry did as he said.

After that incident, Ginny started acting more like a living being rather than a cardboard cutout around Harry. Harry was actually impressed at the change, and started to understand why Ron found the initial Ginny-around-Harry to be so weird.

"Hi, Harry," she said sitting at the table. It was two days before Christmas, and Harry was getting more excited to spend the holiday with Ron and his family. Mrs. Weasley's cooking was amazing, easily rivaling the Hogwarts food.

"Good morning," said Harry, helping himself to some eggs and sausage. As soon as Harry sat down, Mrs. Weasley walked over, frowning at the food Harry got. "Harry, you should be eating much more than that. Come now, dear, and have some nice crispy bacon, and maybe some more eggs. You're so thin, and Violet...," she said as she seemed to shudder. "She's so small. It's amazing she's the same age as Ginny." She piled some bacon and more eggs (and more sausages) onto Harry's plate. Ginny looked at the newly piled plate with large bug-like eyes.

"Morning, Mum," said Ron as he walked in and yawned. He sat down, eyelids still half closed and yawned again, while Mrs. Weasley set a plate down and lopped food on it.

"Where's Violet?" said Harry, to Ginny. Her cheeks turned a bit pink but it faded quickly.

"She said she'd be down soon."

"Harry, pass me some toast," said Fred, on the other side of Ginny.

"I'll get it, brother dear," said George on the other side of Harry.

"How did _you_ get here?" asked Harry.

"Walked," said Fred, "down the stairs." He motioned with his hand, making a little person and miming walking down fake steps.

"Morning, everyone," said Violet, walking in. Mrs. Weasley immediately greeted the girl with a "Good morning" and placed a plate full of food that easily rivaled Harry's in front of her.

"Now, don't hesitate to ask for more, Violet. You're just skin and bones!"

"Yes, Mrs. Weasley," said Violet.

"Oh, call me Molly, dear."

"Molly," said Violet, giving a nod and looking down at her mountain of food.

"Where's Percy?" said Mrs. Weasley. "It seems like I haven't seen him in ages. He comes in at the end of meals and takes food back up to his room with him. What is he doing up there?"

"He's polishing his Prefect badge," said Fred. "It's just not shiny enough."

Violet and Harry both snorted into their milk.

"Honestly, Fred...I'm worried. I know he's not as...outgoing as you, but really."

"He's fine, Mum," said George. "He's probably just doing homework or something."

"Er, Molly," said Violet. "I can't possibly eat anymore." Her plate still held a sizable pile of eggs and sausages.

Mrs. Weasley frowned, but quickly hid her dissatisfaction. "All right then," she said. "What about you, Harry, are you done too?"

"Yes, ma'am," said Harry. He had nearly stuffed himself.

She frowned again, but then turned away to wash some dishes in the sink.

"George," said Fred, as he finished his bacon, "things seem a bit boring at this house, don't they?"

George looked up and smiled. "Why, yes they do. What do you suggest, brother of mine?"

"A Quidditch game of course!"

"Of course!" echoed George.

"It's cold outside," said Mrs. Weasley. "You can't go out there, or you'll get sick."

"It's not that cold," said Fred. "In fact, for young folks like us, it's downright warm! Just look for yourself, the sun's even shining."

"It's cold," continued Mrs. Weasley. "There's snow outside. That's enough for me."

"We'll leave as soon as it gets uncomfortable," said Ron, glancing at the twins. "Please, Mum, I haven't been able to play Quidditch at all at school. And Harry's never played before."

"Harry!" said Fred. "How could you have denied yourself for so long?"

"I...don't know?" asked Harry.

"Me and Ginny are playing too!" said Violet.

"Nobody said anything about allowing any of you to play," said Mrs. Weasley. She looked at Fred and George. "Now if you _must_ go out, dress warmly and don't stay out too long. If one of you gets sick..." She gave a look that instantly told Harry she wasn't joking.

"No problem, Mum!" said Fred and George, as they quickly got up, leaving their plates at the table and running outside. Ron and Harry looked at each other and went on their way, while Violet grabbed Ginny's arm and pulled her along.

"I said dress warmly!" came Mrs. Weasley's voice as they left, but nobody went back inside to put anything extra on.

oOoOoOo

"Let her play!" said Violet.

"She's too little," said Ron. "And she's a girl. She doesn't even know how to fly. And I don't think Harry should let _you _play either, but he's your brother, not me."

"Thank God for that," Violet grumbled.

Ron and the twins were showing a lot of reluctance to letting Ginny play, and kept on saying that the only reason Violet could was because they couldn't take away permission — that was Harry's job. Since Harry didn't have a reason to do that, and because he knew that she'd punch him into next week if he tried it, he told everybody Violet should be allowed to play. But Violet wanted Ginny to play too.

"Why don't you teach her to fly then?" said Harry. "It's not very hard."

"For you it isn't," said Ron. "But it wasn't so easy for us."

"Speak for yourself, Ronniekins," said Fred. "George and I were great flyers from the very beginning, as you should remember."

"So that time where you both flew into the house and fell on Dad didn't happen?"

"Nope," said George. "Don't know what you're talking about."

"Enough!" said Violet. She had her fists balled at her sides. "She's playing, end of discussion! If not, I'll go straight to your mum and say I caught a cold because you wouldn't let me go inside."

Harry paled.

"You wouldn't," said Ron. "She'd kill us if you got sick."

"Try me," said Violet. There was a short pause as the twins glanced at each other, both slightly smirking, and Ron looked trapped.

"It's settled then," said Fred. "Ginny, you can use Percy's broom. He won't notice."

Ginny's eyes lit up at this, while Ron scowled. "If anything happens to her, it's your fault!" he said.

"Nothing's going to happen to me, Ron," said Ginny, speaking up for the first time, broom in hand.

"You don't even know how to fly!" he said.

"Watch me," she said, mounting the broom. Ron opened his mouth to protest but before he could get a sound out, Ginny was off the ground and flying like it was the easiest thing in the world, while Violet grinned wildly. The twins just stared, their mouths wide open in astonishment. That astonishment quickly turned to excitement as they cheered their sister on, who was currently flying circles around the makeshift pitch.

Finally, she came back and touched down next to Violet. The twins quickly went over to her, leaving the still dumbfounded Ron standing alone in the snow.

"Where'd you learn to do that?" said George.

"No way was that your first time," said Fred. "Who's been showing you tricks? Was it Charlie?"

"It's a secret," said Violet, still grinning. "Ginny and Harry on my team! Three on three!" Violet grabbed Harry's arm and dragged him and Ginny to the other side of the pitch. She forgot their brooms though, and had to go back and grab two more for herself and Harry.

"So...what are we doing exactly?" said Harry, pointedly ignoring the question of Violet's flying ability.

"Three on three Quidditch," said Violet. "Two Chasers and a Keeper for each team. I'll be Keeper!" she said, as she got on her broom and flew to a makeshift hoop on their side of the orchard they were playing in. Harry could see on the other side that Ron was playing Keeper for the other team. Ginny got on her broom, and went out to the middle, where Fred and George were waiting with a ball. Harry got on his broom and followed her, leaving Violet circling the hoop.

"Okay, Harry, Ginny," said Fred. "I'm sure you know how it goes. We've decided first to ten goals wins." He looked at the ball in his hand. "And since we have the ball first, I guess that gives us an advantage!" As soon as he finished speaking, he rocketed off towards the hoop Violet was guarding, and was quickly chased by Ginny. George went in the same direction a fair distance away, and Harry followed him.

The game lasted a long time. Harry was very good at catching the ball when Fred or George tried to pass it, but very bad at making goals. Luckily, Ginny was very good at that, and it seemed Ron had a problem saving goals when it was his sister making them. Fred and George weren't intimidated at all though, and took the game very seriously. Harry felt a large amount of pride at his sister who was able to save a fair amount of goals, even if she did let a few go.

"Harry, catch this!" said Violet. She was way on the other side of the pitch. How was he supposed to catch anything she threw? But in spite of the vast distance, he saw her arm swing back, and then forward. Her entire body seemed to move with the throw, and the ball went flying...and flying. Before Harry knew it, he was flying higher and further to catch it. And catch it he eventually did. After shaking off her look of shock, Ginny flew next to him. He passed it to her and she made another goal.

Ron didn't even try to stop it; his mouth remained slacked open in shock as he let the ball go through the hoop.

"You've been out there way too long!" came Mrs. Weasley's voice, shouting from down below. "I said don't be out long, and what do you do? Stay out here for _three_ hours!"

Harry, Ginny and Ron were the first to touch down, with the twins and Violet taking slightly longer.

"You're going inside! Now! Come on, take the brooms."

"But, Mum, if we stop now they'll have won!" said Fred.

"Who's they?" said Mrs. Weasley.

"Me, Harry and Ginny," said Violet.

Mrs. Weasley suddenly stopped. "You let your sister play? She doesn't even know how to fly!"

The twins grinned widely. "Turns out, she's fantastic!" said George. "She could be on the house team first year if she wanted."

"And ickle Ronnie didn't want her to play," said Fred.

"You didn't either!" said Ron.

"Now, now, Ron, don't let details get in the way of things," said Fred.

"Ginny," said Mrs. Weasley, "how is it you can fly? Nobody's taught you. Unless it was Charlie... And he knew he wasn't supposed to teach you."

"Nobody taught me, Mum," said Ginny. "I just...know how."

Mrs. Weasley pondered for a moment. "Well, if that's the case, then it's okay. I'd still rather you not play until you're at Hogwarts. Don't worry, it's not far off."

Ginny nodded and Violet grinned. Harry got the feeling she wasn't completely telling the truth, but he wasn't about to press it. "Violet, Ginny, you come with me into the house while the boys put away the brooms. You can help me set the table, Ginny."

As they left, Fred pulled Harry to the side. "Why didn't you tell us your sister was such a good flyer, Harry?"

"If I didn't know any better," began George. "I'd say _she_ taught Ginny how to fly."

"I didn't know," said Harry. "How could she have possibly learned? There are no flying brooms at the Dursleys'. I'd never touched one until Hogwarts."

"Hmm," said Fred. "Ron, is Harry a good flyer in your lessons?"

Ron closed the broom shed behind him. "He's better than all of us, able to do whatever Madame Hooch is having us do, no problem."

"I'm not _that_ good, Ron," said Harry.

"So modest!" said Fred.

"Honestly...I'm not much better than anybody else."

"Maybe you don't notice it," said Ron, "but you _are_ better." His face lit up. "You should try for the house team next year! Just...maybe not as a Chaser."

Harry laughed. "Definitely not. I couldn't get a goal past you."

"Ginny only did because she caught me by surprise. I didn't know she could fly at all."

"Aww, look!" said Fred. "Ron wants to be a Keeper when he grows up!"

"Good luck," said George. "You're not about to replace Wood."

Ron sulked all the way back to the Burrow.

oOoOoOo

The week before Christmas went by quickly. Harry was lucky, and he knew it. The Weasleys took a trip to Diagon Alley a week before Christmas for gift shopping, and Harry was able to go out with Ron, the twins, and Percy to buy a few things. He wanted to make it up to Violet for not giving her something for her birthday, so he made sure to get her something better than everybody else. He hoped she liked it. Ron was easier to shop for. All he wanted was food. He could also get Neville a plant of some sort. What really stumped him was what to get Alex and Victoria. They were his friends, but...what was he supposed to get a girl, and what would Alex appreciate?

"Do you think Alex would like this?" said Harry, holding up some colour changing ink.

Ron grimaced. "Just get him some dark artefact if you need to get him something."

"Ron..."

"What? It's the...oh fine, get him the ink. It's fine. Get some of that fancy parchment to."

Harry grabbed some and headed towards the counter, while the twins joked around outside the shop.

"What should I get Victoria?" asked Harry.

"Chocolate? That's what I'm getting her."

"Then we can't get the same things."

"Ask your sister. She's a girl."

Harry hit his forehead with the palm of his hand. How could he have forgotten?

"Where would your mother have taken them?" asked Harry.

"I don't know. Ask Percy." Ron busied himself with inspecting something labeled as a "blood-letter quill" as Harry walked over to Percy, currently in the middle of an argument with the twins.

"I'll have you keep out of my personal life if you don't mind," said Percy, not noticing Harry.

"So you haven't just been polishing your prefect badge all day!" said Fred, winking at Harry.

"You've been keeping your new girlfriend from us," said George, "and she's a first year! What will Mum say?"

"What ever happened to that Clara girl? She finally realise what a bore you are?"

"Like I said," began Percy, "it's none of your business. And I suggest you keep quiet about it or I'll tell Mum about that map Tancred gave you." The twins' faces fell. "Didn't think I knew about that? He told me. You're lucky I didn't tell Mum right away." Percy folded his arms over his chest.

"Right then, Perce. We don't know why you're threatening anything," said Fred.

"We don't know anything," said George. "We don't even know what we were just talking about. Maybe Harry knows?"

Percy turned around and paled. "Harry," he said, "whatever you just heard, I'd appreciate it, if you didn't mention it to anybody."

Harry didn't understand all the secrecy Percy wanted, but he nodded. "Do you know where your mother would have taken my sister and Ginny? I need to ask them a favour."

"Er, yes. It's...," he paused and pulled a watch out of his pocket, glanced at it, and put it back. "They should be at a fabric store about now. Mum likes to shop at Thyron's Threads. Come along. We should be leaving this place anyway. Ron!"

oOoOoOo

"Get her a diary," said Violet. "All girls want diaries, and I'm sure with two sisters, she'd have more than enough to write about. What do you think, Ginny?"

Ginny nodded her head. "A diary's good."

"Oh," said Harry. "Well, that's easy. I could have come up with that myself." Violet laughed, and Ginny giggled.

"Then why didn't you?" said Violet. "Oh, and don't get _me_ a diary. If you do, I'll know you couldn't think of anything for me either."

"I already got you something," said Harry.

Violet's face lit up. "Really! What is it? You know, I got you something already too."

"Then I think this is going to be a very good Christmas. We'll actually get gifts this time."

Harry barely registered Ginny's look of surprise.

oOoOoOo

"Harry," said a far-away voice. "Harry, wake up!" It was Ron. "It's Christmas, you have to wake up!" Harry sat up at the word "Christmas," and looked around. Ron was standing over him, in his pajamas. Harry pulled off his covers and went down the stairs with Ron to where the rest of the Weasleys, minus Ginny, were waiting. Violet was also missing. The bottom of the tree that has been placed in the room was covered in presents, and he knew that at least one of those was for him. Looking around, he saw his present to Violet, and smiled to himself. He was sure she was going to like it.

Suddenly, Harry heard footsteps from the stairs. Ginny and Violet entered the room, plopping themselves down on the floor next to the twins. They both looked very sleepy. How could you be sleepy on Christmas?

Mrs. Weasley stood up. "Now that everybody's here, should we have breakfast first or presents?"

"Presents!" said everyone, even Mr. Weasley. Throughout their visit, Harry hadn't seen much of the Weasley patriarch. Work must have taken up a lot of his time; he even had dark circles under his eyes, but was nevertheless smiling widely.

"Okay then, as always," said Mrs. Weasley. "Percy, help pass out presents, will you?"

"Yes, Mum," said Percy. He joined Mr. and Mrs. Weasley in wading through the presents and handing them out to the appropriate people.

Harry didn't take his eyes off the present he bought for Violet. It cost an awful lot of money (he was glad for the trip to Gringotts before Christmas shopping), and he wanted to see it all be worth it. Part of him didn't like spending so much after what Hagrid had said, and because of the small spat he had with Violet...but this was _for_ Violet.

"Here you are, Harry," said Mrs. Weasley, handing him a lumpy package. "You get one with the rest of the family."

He held it in his hands, looking at the "Harry" scrawled across the wrapping.

"And here's a few more for you," said Percy, handing Harry a few more packages. "They arrived by owl earlier this morning."

Harry looked through them. He saw a small, grubby package from Hagrid, a nicely wrapped green package from Alex, and a blue box from Neville. Lastly, there was a lightly wrapped parcel. It was addressed to him, but there was nothing that said who it was from.

Harry pushed his presents to the side, looking at his present for his sister. Percy was going for it right now.

"Thanks for the chocolate, Harry," said Ron, his mouth full of chocolate frog. Harry nodded his head to indicate he heard, and then turned his eyes back to his gift for Violet. Percy picked it up. He looked at the tag, and walked over to...Harry.

"Another one for you," he said.

Harry tried to contain his shock. He looked down and sure enough, it had his name on it. Squinting to see who it was from, he saw the name, Violet. He looked over to his sister who was holding an extremely similar package with identical wrapping, and an equally confused expression on her face.

"Looks like everybody has everything," said Mr. Weasley, as he sat down. Harry looked down and realized he had gotten a few more packages without noticing. Harry stared at his parcel from Violet. He knew what it was, because he'd gotten her the same thing. And judging by the look on Percy's face, he knew what it was too. He hoped they wouldn't get in trouble.

"You going to open those?" said Fred from across the room. He and his twin were wearing identical blue jumpers, except for the letters on them. "Or can we have them?" He grinned.

"Boys," said Mrs. Weasley, "he can take his time if he wants to."

Harry looked over at Mrs. Weasley, who smiled kindly at him. If they had to open up such a thing, there was no sense in doing it first. He picked out the package at the bottom of his pile, the one Mrs. Weasley gave him.

As he opened it, he stole a glance at Violet, who he was glad to see had the same idea he had, and was opening a similar package. As he ripped the paper off, he discovered a thick, hand-knit brown jumper with an "H" on it. He immediately put it on, feeling warmth surge through him at the thoughtfulness of the gift. All of the Weasley children were wearing one, each with a corresponding letter to their name. It felt so nice to be included with the rest of the family, even though he wasn't part of it.

Harry looked over at his sister. She was currently pulling a green jumper on, happily chatting away at Percy, who looked to be humoring her rather than being genuinely interested.

"Thanks, Mrs. Weasley," said Harry, turning and smoothing down the jumper.

"Oh, it was nothing," she said smiling.

Harry turned to his other presents. Opening them up, he got a small, lumpy fruitcake from Hagrid, a box of Bertie Botts Every Flavour Beans from Neville, a box full of chocolate frog cards from Ron, a small crystal potions set from Alex, and a box of fancy assorted Muggle chocolates from Victoria. Finally, he was down to just two packages: the one from Violet and the unmarked one.

Picking up the unmarked package first, he gently began to rip the paper off. A light silvery grey fabric fell out as soon as he made the first tear. Lifting it up, it appeared to be a cloak of some kind. As he searched, he found a letter that read:

_Your Father left this in my possession before he died. It is time it was returned to you. Use it well. A very Happy Christmas to you and your sister._

There was no signature. He stared at it, dissecting the loopy handwriting and racking his brain trying to figure out if he'd seen it somewhere before. If he had, he couldn't remember where from.

"Hey, Violet," said Harry, over the noise of the other Weasleys. She turned to face him, about to open his present. "Put that down and come here for a second." She looked down at the gift, but then went ahead and left it.

"What is it?" she said.

"Do you recognize this handwriting at all?" said Harry. He knew she probably wouldn't, but still...there was a chance.

"Hmm," she said. "Nope, doesn't look familiar. What'd you get?" Harry showed her the cloth. "Looks like a cloak."

"Look, everybody!" said Fred all of a sudden. "Violet's got an invisibility cloak!"

The room got very quiet. And then not so quiet.

"Wicked!"

"Can I try it on, Violet?"

"Who would have given you such an expensive thing?"

"Is that really yours?"

"That's so expensive!"

"It's not mine!" shouted Violet suddenly, throwing it at Harry. "It's his! Go crazy at him, not me."

Everybody stared at Harry, who suddenly began to feel extremely uncomfortable.

"Uh, is that what this is?" he said dumbly.

"Sure is, Harry," said Mr. Weasley. "But who would have sent you one?"

"I don't know. It came with a note, but it's unsigned." Harry handed the note to Mr. Weasley, who took it.

He looked over it for a moment before saying, "You're a pretty lucky bloke, Harry."

"Sir?"

"I recognize the handwriting on this. I know who sent this to you, but if he didn't want to leave his signature, that's fine. Just know that it's perfectly safe, and you got yourself a very interesting magical item." He handed Harry the card back.

"Put it on, Harry!" said Fred. A chorus of agreement followed.

Harry shook his head. He really didn't want to show off in front of everybody. This was something that belonged to his father. How was he supposed to just flash it around to everybody after just getting it?

Mrs. Weasley seemed to sense this as she said, "Calm down, everyone. Harry doesn't have to put it on if he doesn't want to."

"But you don't mind. Right, Harry?" said Fred.

"Err..."

"That's enough," said Mr. Weasley. "Harry doesn't feel comfortable. I'd like everybody to respect that and to leave it be."

Fred and George looked a bit uncomfortable. Percy was pointedly looking in the opposite direction of Harry, as if he would never think of being overly interested in anything ever, and Ron was still looking closely at the cloak in Harry's lap. Mrs. Weasley was the first to break the silence.

"Now, now, I think that's enough gawking," she said.

"That's right, everyone," said Mr. Weasley. "Go back to your own presents." Everybody turned, reluctantly, to whatever they were doing before. Harry turned to his last remaining present, the long package from Violet. He glanced over at Violet who had re-situated herself next to Percy, and was currently opening up her present from Harry. Harry looked down at his last present. He began to rip the paper off, and there was a collective gasp. Harry looked around. Everybody but Percy (who was burying his face in his right palm) was staring wide-eyed at Violet, who was looking down at her new broom. Harry stared too, but not for long, as Violet then pointed accusingly at him.

"He has a broom too," she said slowly, not taking her finger off him. "I got him one too. You can all stare at him now, please."

Harry felt himself go red. Quickly, he ripped the remaining paper off, exposing his own broom fully. More gasps were heard, though, these were slightly more subdued.

"Wow," said Ron. "You got a Golden Arrow."

"Looks like it," said Harry, not knowing what else to say about it. "Er...thanks, Violet."

Everybody looked back over to Violet. It was her turn to blush now.

"But look, Ronniekins," said Fred. "Violet's got a Nimbus 2001. Looks like those two have the right sort of thinking. Quidditch!"

"Can we have a go, Violet?" said George.

"You'd let me try yours out...right, Harry?" asked Ron.

"Okay everybody, I think that's enough...again," said Mr. Weasley. And everybody quieted down again. It was the most awkward Christmas event Harry ever had to endure, not that there was much opportunity during previous Christmas celebrations.

oOoOoOo

The rest of the day was one big pile of fun. After breakfast, everybody went out and had a go on the new brooms, doing laps and tossing a fake Quaffle around. Ron had commented that both brooms were high-end broomsticks that any pro-Quidditch player would be proud to own...although Harry's was apparently more suited for Seekers and Chasers.

Several hours later, everybody was inside for a lavish Christmas dinner. Mrs. Weasley really worked hard to make sure everything came out well, and took particular interest in Violet's appetite. It didn't bother Harry much. It was a great opportunity to tease his sister about becoming fat, something she didn't take kindly to.

All too soon, it was time to go to bed. It was the best Christmas Harry had ever experienced in his life, and he was sad to see it go. There was just one last thing Harry had to do.

Cornering Violet coming out of the bathroom, Harry held out the invisibility cloak. "I want you to have it for now," said Harry. "You need it more than I do."

"What are you talking about, Harry?" she said slowly. "It was given to you, not me."

Harry paused for a moment. He understood why he wanted to do this. He just needed to find the right words.

"Well, I mean...you know..." That didn't work. Harry paused again. "Our dad owned it," he said after a moment. "It's a connection to our family, besides the Dursleys. You need it more than I do since you're still staying with them."

Violet smiled. "If it's what you want, Harry," she said, taking the cloak. Harry turned to leave, unsure what else to say.

"Thank you," said Violet, before turning quickly and running to Ginny's room.

oOoOoOo

The remainder of the Holidays passed in a blur. Harry couldn't remember having so much fun, not even at school. He got to be with his sister and his friends, and for the first time, he felt welcome by everybody around him. It was all too soon that Harry found himself back at platform nine and three quarters, about to head back to Hogwarts.

Harry stared as the Dursleys made their way to the platform, with Dudley waddling behind his parents. He'd separated from the Weasleys so he could see his sister off. Violet looked sad, and Harry wished very much that she didn't have to go back with them. He'd gotten so used to seeing her in normal clothes and looking happy that he completely forgot how much she hated it there. She hated it even more than he did, he realised.

Harry put his hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry," he said. "The year's half over, and I'll still write. Then you can come next year. You can wait that long, right?" She looked up at him, and nodded.

"Of course I can," she said. "That doesn't mean I want to."

"I guess not," said Harry.

Harry remained silent until the Dursleys stopped at Violet.

"What are you doing here, boy?" said Uncle Vernon. "Don't you have freaky friends to be with?"

"I just want to say goodbye to Violet," said Harry.

"Well say goodbye so we can be on our way."

And Harry said goodbye to his only sister. He hated it, but it had to be done. It wasn't that long. That's what he told her. But did he believe it himself? He didn't know.

* * *

A/N

This chapter has a lot of things going for it. It's pretty much the middle of the story. It's randomly really long. And my favourite thing about it is that it shows off why I very much like Third Person Limited POV. Lots of things happen in the chapter that Harry has nothing to do with, and so we don't see it. I think that's fun. So we get hints that things are going on, but we don't know what they are, and Harry doesn't really question many of them.


	12. The Potions Club

The day after Harry's return to Hogwarts brought the restart of classes. Harry wasn't too happy about that, but it also allowed Harry to see his friends again. Harry _was_ glad for that.

"Did you have a good break Harry?" asked Neville, setting himself down to the left of Harry for their first breakfast back.

"The best," said Harry, taking a bite of his bacon.

"I had a good Christmas too, but I wouldn't call it 'the best,'" said Victoria sitting on the other side of Neville. "It was quite mundane actually. I'd hoped that my first Christmas as a witch would have been more...I don't know, magical?"

"You were a witch before," said Neville. "You just didn't know it then."

Victoria pouted, but there was mirth etched on her face. "Well, that's the point isn't it?" She giggled. Neville hid his face a bit for some reason.

"What about you Neville?" asked Harry. "How did that reunion go?"

Neville finished swallowing whatever was in his mouth before he said, "Not that great." He coughed a bit and took a sip of pumpkin juice. "My family was always worried I'd be a Squib see? And so I was hounded the entire time by people asking me how my first year at Hogwarts was going, or if I was having any trouble casting spells, and all sorts of rubbish. Mum was especially furious when Gran gave me a Remembral for Christmas."

"But a Remembrall's useful," said Victoria. "What was so bad about it?"

"I guess it was just the last straw for my mum. My dad just ignored it, telling everybody that I was doing fine and there was no need to worry, but my mum and sister didn't take the attention so well. Gran said she didn't mean anything by it, but that didn't really help..."

"That's too bad," said Victoria. "Your family should know you're a great wizard!"

Neville blushed at this comment.

"Isn't that right Harry?" she added.

"Of course it is," said Harry. "There's no doubt about it at all."

Neville nodded. "I'm not bothered by it anymore. It used to get to me, but really, there's nothing to worry about. I was just a late bloomer. There's nothing wrong with that."

"Too right," said Victoria, softly patting Neville on the back. He gave out another cough and Victoria looked confused, as if she was afraid she had caused it.

A few moments passed, and Neville turned to face Harry. "I heard Ron talking about how you got a new broom for Christmas," he said. "A Golden Arrow?"

It was Harry's turn to cough. That broom had been one of the major sources of embarrassment back at the Burrow, along with his invisibility cloak. Hopefully, Neville didn't know about _that_ gift too. "Yeah," said Harry. "My sister bought it for me."

Neville looked a bit envious when he said, "I wish _my_ sister could buy me a broom like that."

"What's so special about that broom?" said Victoria. "Is it better than the ones we have at school?"

Neville gave out a laugh. "The Golden Arrow is top of the line. Best broom out there, except for the Nimbus 2001. But even the Nimbus can't compete with the Arrow for Seekers and Chasers."

Harry nodded. "Yeah, that's what Ron said too."

oOoOoOo

Even as classes got back into full swing, Harry found himself with a lot of free time. Sure, studying and doing homework took up plenty of time, but Harry really needed something more to do than sitting in a common room all day.

"Why don't you come with me to a Potions Club meeting?" said Victoria, sitting next to Ron who was currently engaged in a game of Wizard's Chess with Neville. "I hear it's your worst subject after all. And the Potions Club is headed by the best Potions Master in school!" She smiled brightly as she said this.

Harry shuddered. "The last thing I want is more time doing potions."

"And who'd want to spend _more_ time with Snape?" said Ron.

Victoria laughed and shook her head. "No, no...the Potions Club is headed by Professor Termon. Why would you think I meant Professor Snape when I said 'best in the school?'"

"Oh right, I'd forgotten about her," said Ron, ordering his knight to take Neville's queen."Checkmate."

"I hate this game," said Neville.

"So when does this club thing go on?" asked Harry. It was something to do, and he _was_ pretty bad at potions. You'd think reading a boring potions book for your birthday would help. But Snape did make him nervous...very nervous.

"It meets on Friday's, after all the classes are done," said Victoria. Harry didn't actually know when that was. Victoria noticed this and giggled as she answered, "That would be at six o' clock."

"We could make that, right guys?" asked Harry. Ron's face fell, and Neville looked as if he just saw Harry grow bat wings and begin sulking around, looking like Snape himself.

"Or...maybe just me..." Their faces now looked like he was just bonkers.

"I'm sure there's something else for you to do besides that, Harry," said Neville. "Even joining the Gobstones club would be better than that."

Victoria gave a soft growl, and Neville looked down towards his feet as if he realized he just did something terribly wrong.

"Potions club is much more fun, _and_ useful, than playing Gobstones," she said.

"On second thought," said Neville quickly, looking back up, "I'll go with you Harry, if you want to go."

Ron look betrayed. "Not me," he said. "I'll...do something. But I definitely don't want to go. I know!" He paused thoughtfully. "Okay, maybe not. I guess I'll just stay in the Gryffindor common room then...alone."

Harry understood this to mean that Ron didn't want to be left alone. "You could come with -"

"No!" said Ron. "I really couldn't. It's okay. You guys can go if you want to."

He didn't look happy about it, but if he was sure, then Harry wasn't going to argue.

"I guess that settles it then, Victoria," said Harry, standing up. He'd play Ron a game of chess to cheer him up. That'd help.

oOoOoOo

Harry dreaded the boring machinations of school from Monday through Thursday, but eventually, Friday showed up. Harry still wasn't sure by then if it was such a good idea. Having only Fridays to look forward to didn't seem like such a great thing. Maybe he could join some other clubs or something?

Eventually, the long awaited Friday showed up. Ron was still sour about it, but said he wasn't angry or anything, even as he turned down his last chance to follow Victoria to the club meeting, and sulked towards the fireplace in the Gryffindor common room.

"Well," said Neville, turning away from the sulking Ron. "Let's get going then."

And so they left Ron to himself, and followed Victoria through various corridors and passageways, eventually finding themselves in a place that looked close to where Harry knew the kitchens were supposed to be.

They turned left and finally Victoria stopped at a door.

"Here we are!" said Victoria. "You'll remember this place for later, right?"

"Not likely," said Neville.

Victoria gave a fake huff. "Then I guess I'll just have to hold your hand so you won't get lost then."

Neville coughed at that, as the door they were standing next to opened. A head poked out.

"I thought I heard somebody out here," said Alex, only his head visible. "Nice to see you, Victoria."

She sidestepped to the left and Harry got a better look at Alex.

"And you, Harry and Neville. Sorry I missed you two. Victoria blocked my view."

"Are you calling me fat?" said Victoria, smiling. Alex smiled in return.

"So," he began. "Why don't you all come in? Professor Termon isn't here yet, but Tancred and I can keep you company if you wish."

Victoria said, "Sure!" while Neville just grunted.

They walked into the room, Alex holding the door open for them. It was small, and smelled heavily of potion ingredients, much worse than Snape's classroom. Neville, Victoria, and Alex didn't seem to mind though, so Harry kept that thought to himself.

There was only one other person in the room at the moment, a fifth-year Ravenclaw who hat to be the aforementioned Tancred. Harry had heard the name before, and seen the boy around Ravenclaw Tower. He had just never been able to put the two together until now.

"More people?" said Tancred, looking at the new arrivals. "It's a bit early isn't it?"

Alex shrugged. "Victoria brought new club members, so maybe that's why."

"That is why," said Victoria, her hands on her hips. "Besides, I always get here just as early as you two."

Tancred waved his hand dismissively. "We know, we know."

"How early are we?" asked Neville.

Victoria put a finger to her chin in thought. "I suppose it'll be another twenty minutes or so before people start showing up."

"That's not too bad," said Harry.

So they waited, making idle chatter with each other. In the course of the discussion Harry learned that Tancred Sekt was friends with all of Ron's brothers who currently attended Hogwarts. Which seemed a bit odd, since Percy was so different from the Twins.

"What do you think of Ron?" asked Neville, sitting on a desk next to Victoria.

"Never properly met him. But from what I hear he's kind of a berk."

Harry resisted the urge to chuckle, while Victoria chastised Sekt for being "too mean." Everybody laughed as Victoria and Sekt started bickering about if Ron was a berk or not. Harry found the whole thing quite amusing (and it got even more so, as more students filtered into the room), but as time went on, it became apparent that something was a bit off.

"She's pretty late," said a Hufflepuff girl Harry didn't know, looking at her wristwatch. "She's usually here before I get here," she said, turning to him. "My name's Olivia by the way." She slowly pointed at Harry. "You're Harry Potter?"

Harry nodded dumbly, hoping this Olivia girl would leave him alone.

"Harry!" said Victoria, opening the door out of the room. Harry quickly got up and walked over to her.

"Neville and I are going to see if we can find Professor Termon. Would you like to come?" As soon as she finished speaking Neville walked over, twirling a pocket watch in his hand.

"Look what I won off Tankred! he said. "After you two stopped arguing he bet me a watch that I couldn't beat him at Snap."

Victoria looked at Neville in amusement. "Not Exploding Snap?" she said.

Neville shook his head. "Nope. He said he finds the explosions too distracting to play."

"Ah. Well, anyway, let's go. Professor Termon's got to be around here somewhere."

They headed out the door, and closed it behind them, leaving the chatter-filled room behind.

oOoOoOo

"We've been running around for twenty minutes!" said Neville. "If she's not back by now, it's probably best to just go back to our common rooms."

"Just one more corridor!" said Victoria. They were already walking through deserted corridors on the upper levels, where Victoria said Professor Termon's potions class was. But since no other students were around, everything seemed much darker, as if they shouldn't be there.

"I hear somebody over here!" said Victoria, indicating another abandoned corridor. They were about to continue when voices became clear.

"I haven't the foggiest idea what you're talking about Professor Snape," came a soft, feminine voice that was still loud enough to be heard from far away.

"That's Professor Termon!" whispered Victoria. "Let's go!"

She pulled both Harry and Neville by the hand and quickly led them through the corridor. Suddenly, Neville stopped himself from being pulled along.

Victoria turned around and looked at him.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"I think they're talking about something personal," said Neville. As they listened, Snape said something to Professor Termon that the students couldn't quite make out. The corridor continued and then turned left - they heard Professor Termon speak again, and the source of her voice had stopped at the corner as if she had stopped walking.

"Professor Snape!" she said. "I still don't know what you're talking about!"

Neville ran for the corner, and Victoria and Harry followed. Stopping just short of the turn, they were able to make the other voice.

"Fine," said an oily voice Harry recognized at once. "Then I suggest you keep in mind what has been said anyway." Snape sounded as if he was warning her of some horrible danger. Was there something going on?

And then they turned the corner, narrowly avoiding bumping into the three children huddled next to the wall. All three stood up quickly, and Victoria started stammering something unintelligible.

"Don't worry," said Snape, glowering at them. "You didn't hear anything important."

"S-s-sorry!" said Victoria. "We didn't mean to eavesdrop or anything, we were just looking for Professor Termon because she's really late!"

"Yes, I am," said Professor Termon, smiling down at Victoria. She had very thick long blond hair, and green eyes. She seemed to be a bit taller than Snape, but Harry couldn't be sure because she was slouching a bit.

Harry heard loud clacking coming from beyond the corner. Professor Termon looked behind her, and Professor Vicius made his appearance around the corner.

"Ah," he said.

Harry couldn't be sure, but it seemed that Professor Termon didn't like the Defense Professor. Her eyes narrowed a bit, and her smile faltered slightly. She glanced at Snape for a moment before speaking.

"Well, unless it's really pressing business Professor Vicius, I should get going. I'm pretty late."

Professor Vicius nodded. "Quite all right," he said. "I just wanted to have a little chat with Professor Snape here."

"How interesting that I needed to speak to you too," said Snape, venom dripping from his voice. "Let's make this more...private." He looked over at Professor Termon before gripping Professor Vicius by the arm and leading him back the way he came.

A few moments passed before Professor Termon sighed, and smiled deeply. "Let's get going then, shall we?" she said.

They followed Professor Termon along the corridors, making their way back to the Potions Club.

"What was Professor Snape talking to you about?" said Victoria. "He really is an awful man isn't he?"

Professor Termon was humming as she walked, but stopped to say, "Don't be so hard on him. He's just a bit of a downer, that's all. And it wasn't anything you need to trouble yourselves over."

Victoria seemed satisfied with this, but Harry wasn't. She was being really loud when she thought she was alone with Snape, as if she wanted somebody to come. Was Snape threatening or hurting her in some way?

Harry didn't voice his suspicions out loud though, as they finally arrived at the Potions Club room.

oOoOoOo

The Potions Club was actually pretty fun. It was like normal Potions class, except no Snape, Dudley, Malfoy, Hermione, or sadly, Ron. Professor Termon also allowed questions from everybody, something Snape never did unless it was a Slytherin.

They were brewing a simple Fever Reducing Potion, something normally covered early on in second year. Some Hufflepuffs were having trouble with it and asked if the group could work on it. It worked out well, Professor Termon said. It didn't take long, and they had much less time than normal due to how late she was.

Another difference was that ingredients were passed out one at a time, rather than expecting everybody to have them. They were always passed out at the appropriate time, and Harry was very glad about that. It kept him from messing up as much.

The students were also allowed to work in groups as big or small as they wanted, so Harry got to work together with both Neville and Victoria, something he thought was rather a lot like hanging around in a common room. He really wished Ron had decided to come.

"Let me see what you have over here," said Professor Termon, coming up to them. She sniffed the potion they had in their cauldron and nodded in approval.

"All you need is some Flaxseed Oil," she said brightly. Fishing in a pocket on her robe, she pulled out a black bottle. Harry saw it was labeled with the appropriate ingredient. "Here you go. That's my only bottle though. Be sure to pass it around when you're done!"

"Thanks, Professor!" said Victoria, taking the bottle. She handed the bottle to Harry who uncorked it and measured the appropriate amount, not at all uncomfortable about the Potions Master (or was it Mistress?) still so close. If it was Snape he would have been extremely nervous. As soon as Harry dropped the liquid in, the potion turned a violent shade of red and started smoking.

"Your potion isn't supposed to do that," said Professor Termon.

"But he did it right," said Neville. "I saw him."

"Hmm," said Professor Termon. "Let me see that bottle."

Neville grabbed the bottle and handed it to the professor who looked at it closely. She waved her hand over the opening of the bottle, probably trying to sniff at the ingredient. Suddenly a look of worry spread across her face, as she pulled the label off the bottle.

"This isn't Flaxseed Oil," she said. "Everybody, can I have your attention please!"

The idle conversations died out instantly. Harry was impressed she commanded so much respect while still being so nice.

"I would like it if everybody would vacate the room as quickly and as orderly as possible. Harry, Victoria, Neville, you three first. Try not to breathe"

Harry immediately stopped breathing, panic flooding him. He turned, and quickly made his way for the door, followed by Victoria and Neville. As soon as they were out, the rest of the students were piling out of the room. When the last student left, and Professor Termon wasn't after him, Harry began to worry more. What had happened? Why was she still inside?

Suddenly there was a horrendously loud BANG, and Harry could feel the walls vibrate around him. A sharp pain in Harry's ears accompanied the sound, and Harry put his hands to his ears, trying to keep out the buzzing. It was like being back at The Burrow and feeling one of Fred and George's explosions, except a thousand times worse.

"Professor Termon!" Victoria screamed. Worried speech arose from the group of students and Harry found himself on the verge of panic. Victoria tried to make her way through the crowd to the door, but Neville held her back.

"We can't go in there," he said. There was dread in his voice. "It could still be dangerous to breathe."

"But what about Professor Termon!" said Victoria.

"Don't worry, a few people have already gone to get help." It was Alex, making his way through the group towards them.

"We should go too!" said Victoria.

"There's no need for that," came Professor Dumbledore's voice. He was making his way through the corridor and as he got to the crowd of students, they seemed to part before him like cats not wanting to be stepped on.

As he got to the door, he turned around, saying, "I want everybody to make their way to their own common rooms now, please." He seemed to look straight at Victoria. "Everything that can be done will be." Nobody moved from their spot, but as soon as Professor Dumbledore opened the door, he boomed, "Back to your common rooms, now!"

Nobody argued with that.

oOoOoOo

Back in Gryffindor Tower, Ron was flabbergasted.

"It's a good thing I didn't go then," he said. "Sounds dangerous. Is Professor Termon all right?"

Neville shrugged. "We don't know. Nobody stayed to find out. I'm sure she'll be all right though."

Something didn't sit well with Harry however.

"I don't think it was an accident," he said.

"What do you mean, Harry?" asked Neville.

"Did you hear how loud Professor Termon was in that corridor before the Club Meeting? When she was with Snape?" Harry ducked down and lowered his voice. "I think he was threatening her or something. I think he has something to do with this."

"Blimey Harry, that's a big accusation."

"Snape's certainly nasty enough though," said Ron. "If he felt threatened by another Potions Master, I wouldn't put it past him to sabotage her work."

"We'll have to tell Victoria when we next see her," said Harry. "She'll want to know. Professor Termon was her favourite teacher, afterall."

oOoOoOo

"No, no, no!" said Victoria. "This is terrible news!"

"We're not sure if he really did it. It's just speculation!" said Neville.

"Oh, don't you all see?"

Harry shook his head, followed by Neville and Ron. Victoria looked on the edge of breaking down into terrible frustration at this.

"He did do it, I'm sure of it!" she said. "But not because she's a better Potions Master, although she _is_." Nobody argued with her there.

"It all has to do with the Philosopher's Stone!"

"You're still on about that?" asked Ron.

"Of course I am! Hermione managed to weasel it out of Hagrid after she spoke with Flamel, and _he_ didn't give up anything. Neville's parents also didn't say anything. It's here in the castle. And the attack on Halloween was a distraction to get it! It also explains why Fluffy was killed that day, guarding it."

"Okay, if that's true, what does that have to do with Snape and Professor Termon?" asked Harry.

"You owled my _parents_?" said Neville. "I thought you were going to owl _me_ to ask them!"

Victoria just waved her arms at Neville, as if his speech was meaningless. "Professor Snape wants the stone! And Professor Termon must have been on to him, so he had to get her out of the way!"

"That's crazy talk," said Ron. He was about to say more, when he caught a sight of Victoria, tears in her eyes. She seemed to be good at looking innocent and sad, like a lost kitten, and it shut Ron up.

"Please, help me with this," she said, tears slowly making their way down her face. "If we just make sure, maybe go check where Fluffy used to be, we can be sure...and then we can go tell Dumbledore or somebody."

"I don't know," said Neville. "Why don't we wait until Professor Termon gets better, and ask her exactly what happened? Maybe it was just an accident and we're just over-reacting?"

"But - but..."

"It shouldn't be that long," said Neville. "Right guys?"

Harry wasn't too sure, but he nodded anyway along with Ron.

Silence followed, punctured by small sniffles from Victoria. Finally she nodded her head. "Okay," she said. "As soon as she gets back."

"And if she doesn't say anything, then we'll go check it out," said Harry, taking the initiative.

"O-okay," said Victoria.


	13. The Invisible Trapdoor

"It's too bad about that professor," Malfoy drawled. "Leave it to an airhead Hufflepuff to blow herself up."

"Don't listen to him," said Neville. "He's just trying to get a rise out of one of us."

Victoria nodded mutely. A few days ago it had shown up in the _Prophet_ that Professor Termon had died at a place called St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries. Victoria wasn't taking it well at all. She had hardly said a word since she found out.

"Nonsense, Longbottom," said Malfoy, with a light sneer. "I'm simply telling the truth. You haven't seen Professor Snape blow himself up, even with utter failures like you in his class."

"Can't you just go away?" said Hermione. She'd been hanging around Victoria a lot more often ever since the news came out.

"Nobody was talking to _you_, you stupid little—"

"That's enough, you!" said Valencia. Both of Victoria's sisters were also spending strange amounts of time with Victoria; as far as Harry knew, they never spent much time together at school. But this was definitely Victoria's time of need, so of course they'd be around to help.

"If you don't shut your mouth," continued Valencia, "I'll shut it for you."

Malfoy's face grew into something resembling a grimace. Behind him, Harry could see somebody approaching from the Slytherin table.

As the figure approached, Harry recognized it to be Cepheus Malfoy. Draco was about to say something, still not noticing his approaching brother, but then Cepheus put a hand on his brother's shoulder. Draco whirled around, stopping when he saw his brother.

"What do _you_ want," he said. Harry couldn't see his face, as he was now facing away from Harry and the rest.

"You're causing trouble," said Cepheus Malfoy. "I'm sure these... _people_ know your opinion, so there's no need to start making trouble. You don't want another detention do you?"

"Go shove off! I'll do what I want."

Cepheus Malfoy grabbed Draco by the arm and physically dragged the boy out of the Great Hall.

"Bloody little wanker," said Valencia. "If he tries that crap again I'll have to hurt him."

"Victoria, you want to go back to the common room?" asked Veronica. Valencia looked at Veronica quizzically. "She hasn't even touched her dinner. We should just take her back."

"I'm coming too," said Hermione and Neville at the same time. They looked at each other, and then nodded slightly.

Valencia and Veronica looked at each other for a moment.

"Sure," said Veronica. "Come on Victoria, we're going. Some of your friends are coming too." She spoke softly, as if she was afraid Victoria wasn't really listening.

She then turned to Harry and Ron and said, "We'll see you later I guess. If she doesn't feel better..."

Harry and Ron nodded. It was hard seeing Victoria so depressed.

Victoria, her sisters, Neville and Hermione got up and left the hall, making their way to Ravenclaw tower, leaving Ron and Harry to themselves. Ron turned slowly back to his food, but Harry didn't feel hungry anymore.

"When do you think she'll snap out of it?" Harry said.

"I don't know. Soon though."

Harry didn't know why Ron was so sure it'd be soon, but it was enough to hope.

oOoOoOo

Victoria didn't get back to her old self for several more weeks. It was a huge relief for everyone when she finally started talking again—that is, until she started talking about conspiracies again.

"We said we'd help, so we will," said Harry.

"But I don't want to check out the third floor again!" said Ron. "Once was enough, thanks."

"Come on, Ron. The dog's gone," said Victoria.

"But who knows what kind of thing is there now!"

"It'll just be a quick peek. You said you would!"

Ron sighed. "Fine. When are we going to go get ourselves killed?"

Harry winced inwardly. Ron should have picked a better set of words. As soon as Victoria heard the word "killed" she recoiled as if she had been struck.

"You think I'd do that?" she said. "You think I'd just go out on some fool errand that I know would get us all killed?"

"I didn't mean—"

"Oh, you didn't _mean_ that?"

"I wasn't serious!"

"Then why did you say it?"

"It just... just kind of—"

"... slipped out? Is that it? Well it shouldn't have. It shouldn't even cross your mind that I'd knowingly put you in lethal danger!"

"Look, I'm sorry okay!"

Victoria didn't say anything to that, but just stared intently at Ron. Harry moved towards her.

"He didn't mean anything by it," said Harry.

Victoria's eyes were watering. "I-I _know_. But still... it's still hard."

"It's all right. We're still going to help you," said Harry. Ron nodded his head in agreement.

oOoOoOo

"Did we _all_ have to come?" asked Ron.

He had a point there, but Harry kept this thought to himself.

"I don't want to tell people they can't come," said Victoria. "Besides, it's a nice gesture."

A lot of people decided to take part in this nice gesture. Harry, Ron, and Neville came along. Hermione did too. With Victoria, that was a total of five people trying to "sneak" around after curfew.

"Quiet!" said Victoria. "I think I hear something!"

"Wee Hufflepuffs out of bed!" It was Peeves, flying through some corridors up ahead. "Going to get Filchy for them!"

"He's not talking about us, is he?" asked Ron.

"Are any of us Hufflepuffs?" said Hermione. As soon as she finished saying this, there was some loud clanging that could be heard in the distance, followed by Peeves's cackling.

"He's far off now," said Victoria. "Let's go. We're lucky there's a distraction. There are other students being chased."

More clattering could be heard, except now it was at least a floor up, and farther away.

"We should go now," said Neville.

They resumed their silent journey to the third floor. For a moment, Harry thought that it would have been better if he had kept the invisibility cloak. He quickly shook that thought from his head though. He was getting along fine right now, and Violet still needed it more than he did.

"Isn't this it?" asked Ron. "It's been a long time, I don't remember."

"That's the room," said Hermione.

They stood there, staring at the door for a while. Lots of terrifying memories were behind that door for Harry. _The dog's gone_, Harry reminded himself. _And besides, you ended up fine._

Victoria suddenly walked over to the door, and opened it. It wasn't locked again. _Was it safe to be unlocked?_

She looked in. Harry was worried that something was wrong as she just stood there for a while, but then she opened the door wider.

"Nothing in there," she said. The door was now wide enough to clearly see inside. There were torches hanging from the walls, providing plenty of light.

The five of them entered the room, leaving the door slightly open behind them.

"Are we in the right room?" said Ron. "There's nothing interesting in here at all."

"This is the right place," said Harry. "I remember it. Look, there are marks on the door from when the dog tried to get me."

"Maybe Hagrid is cleverer than we give him credit for," said Victoria. "Maybe he told us the dog was guarding something just to divert us."

"I don't think so," said Hermione. "Let's all search the room a bit more. We may be missing something."

For the next ten minutes the group searched the room, while Hermione oversaw them. Ron thought she was just being lazy, but she said there was a reason for it.

Finishing their search, everybody except Hermione slumped tiredly against the wall. It was late, and it appeared nothing else could be done in the room. Harry was ready to go to bed.

"There's something hidden here," said Hermione.

Ron looked annoyed. "How would you know? You didn't do anything!"

"I thought it was strange we couldn't see anything here, even though this is definitely the right room. I think that there _is_ something, on the floor in the centre. It's under a Disillusionment Charm."

"What's that?" asked Harry.

"It's a spell that makes the target blend in with the things around it," said Victoria smiling. "We've all been silly, no wonder we missed it. We were assuming what we were looking for was some sort of hidden passage in the walls or something. But I see it now. It looks like a trapdoor in the floor. When Fluffy was here, he was probably standing right on it at all times."

She stood up and walked to the middle of the room. She stamped her foot, and Harry heard it, a distinctive hollow _thud_, much different from the sound of the stone floor. If Harry focused really hard, he thought he could make out where the trapdoor was. What appeared to be more stone tiles didn't match the others around it. It was faint, but Harry could definitely see it now.

"That settles it then?" asked Neville, standing up straight. "You're right, the stone _is_ here, and it's right through that door. Snape probably does want it, and... he killed her to get closer to it."

Victoria nodded solemnly. She looked like she was barely successful in holding back her tears.

"Then we'll have to stop him," said Harry. "We should tell a professor what we found out. Flamel, or Dumbledore. Professor Vicius if neither of them listen."

"That's what we'll do then," said Victoria.

oOoOoOo

The next day, Harry, Ron, and Neville waited in the classroom after History of Magic ended. Professor Flamel, oblivious to the waiting students, started shuffling books around the bookshelf that was positioned behind his desk. A few more moments passed. Finally, as he was putting away _The Darkness in our Past, _Harry spoke up.

"Er... Professor?" said Harry feeling nervous. _How are we supposed to tell him that his Philosopher's Stone is in danger?_

Professor Flamel jumped up, startled. He turned around and smiled.

"Hello, lads," he said. "I didn't see you there. Is something the matter?"

Harry ran a hand through his hair, unsure of what exactly to say. As Harry was about to speak, Neville beat him to it.

"We think Snape is after your Philosopher's Stone."

Professor Flamel gave Neville a piercing gaze. "That's _Professor_ Snape, Mr. Longbottom. And not to worry, it is impossible that Professor Snape is after my stone."

"But he blew up Professor Termon!" said Ron.

Professor Flamel's eyes flashed. "What's that?"

"_Professor_ Snape was talking to Professor Termon right before the Potions Club," said Harry. "We think he was the reason the, er... accident happened."

"Nonsense," said Professor Flamel. "It is also impossible that Snape _blew up_ Professor Termon. What happened to her was just a terrible accident, and we're all very sorry for it. But to blame another professor?" His brow furrowed. "Look, just leave things be. Even if somebody was after my stone, do you think I'd leave it unprotected? My stone is safe. And give Professor Snape credit. He's not going to blow up somebody for no reason."

Harry suddenly got the feeling that Professor Flamel had failed to make the connection between the two accusations, but he wasn't about to voice it to the old wizard.

"I think it's best for you all to go down to the Great Hall. Lunch is about to start. You wouldn't want to miss it."

oOoOoOo

Professor Vicius was even more uninterested.

"I spoke to your friend, Ms. Thompson, already," he said, "and I'll tell you the same thing I told her. Professor Flamel's Philosopher Stone isn't even here. Any strangeness you see has nothing to do with it—not that you need to be getting involved in any strangeness, mind you."

"But—" said Harry, who was instantly cut off.

"No 'buts.' Like I said, you three shouldn't be worrying about this. If there's ever any possibility of danger, so long as Dumbledore is here, everything will be fine."

Harry wasn't convinced, but he kept his mouth shut.

oOoOoOo

All five students were sitting around the fire in the Gryffindor common room. The noise from the surrounding chatter more than covered for them, and Harry wasn't worried about being overheard at all.

"Do you think maybe we're overreacting?" said Neville. "I don't really want to talk to Dumbledore now, if everybody else is so certain everything is okay."

"Everything is not okay!" said Victoria. She strained noticeably to keep her voice down. "Snape did it, I'm sure of it! And the only good reason he'd have to do it would be for that stone!"

"I don't know," said Hermione. "I admit he's really suspicious. And he may be up to something. But I think we should just trust in Dumbledore. He'll keep things safe. So long as he and Flamel are here, I think we can relax."

Victoria's face grew red, her face contorted as if she was about to blow up.

"Fine!" she yelled. A few people around the common room stopped and stared for a moment, but quickly went back to what they were doing. "I'll leave it alone for now! But if even one of them leaves, and I can't find Professor Snape, what then? If he makes a grab for the stone, what am I supposed to do? How could I ever live with myself, knowing I couldn't help capture Professor Termon's murderer?"

Harry looked at her, sympathy etched in his face. "We can go down the trapdoor after him if it ever comes to that. All of us."

"And get expelled?" said Hermione. "Are you crazy?"

"Hermione!" said Victoria. "It's not ideal, but we have to do something if it comes down to it! We can't just sit around knowing Snape's going to get away with everything!"

Hermione looked at Victoria. She looked conflicted, but finally she just sighed and said, "All right."

"What sort of mess have we gotten into now?" said Ron.

"Nothing," said Neville. "I'm sure everything will be fine."


	14. Through the Invisible Trapdoor

Months passed by in an uneventful blur

Months passed by in an uneventful blur. In the weeks following their decision, the five students took to following certain professors around: Snape, to keep tabs on him, and Vicius, Flamel, and Dumbledore just to make sure they hadn't left Hogwarts. As it became clearer that things were okay, at least for the moment, (and because they were getting dangerously close to losing too many house points) the group began to loosen up.

Harry found himself missing Violet more and more. She wasn't writing as much because the Dursleys hated having the owls over. She was afraid of the Dursleys locking Ella up again, or worse, locking up Hedwig.

Speaking of the Dursleys, Harry was extremely surprised at how little contact he was having with Dudley. Harry sometimes went entire days without even hearing the blob. It was interesting, knowing he was there but for once, not having to worry about getting beat up. Harry supposed it was because of Dudley's lack of friends at this school.

Sooner than Harry would have believed, it was time for exams. The spring season caused most of the classrooms to be sweltering hot, especially in the rooms where they took their written exams. Even worse, Harry's scar started to hurt frequently. When it started to become a constant ache, Victoria told him to go see Madame Pomfrey. Harry did, but none of the headache potions helped. The pain made taking exams even more difficult, but Harry just ignored it as much as he could.

oOoOoOo

Not soon enough, exams were over. The months following Professor Termon's death had been so uneventful, Harry could have believed that nothing strange had happened at all during the first half of the year—that was until Victoria showed up in a panic, while Harry, Ron and Neville were lying outside on the grass, enjoying the lack of work.

"What's wrong?" asked Neville, as she walked in front of them, blocking the sun and waving her arms around frantically.

"I went to see Professor Vicius to ask a question," she said. Her voice was very jittery, as if she was trying to speak faster than her mouth could handle. "And he wasn't there. But what's worse, Professor Snape's not around either! So I got worried and asked Professor Flitwick if Dumbledore was around, and he's not! He and Flamel were both called away! Today's the day Snape's going after the stone!"

Harry blinked, unsure of what to say. She wanted to do this _now_? Was she sure? "Are you sure he's doing it now?" said Harry, sitting up.

"Yes! Positive!"

"So what are we going to do then?" said Ron, standing up. "Go after him?"

"Exactly!"

Ron sighed, but Harry went over to Victoria.

"Let's go then."

oOoOoOo

"I can't believe I'm here," said Hermione. "I just meant to tell you about Snape, Victoria, I didn't mean to allow myself to actually go and try and stop him. Oh, we must be breaking at least a hundred school rules!"

"What do school rules matter when a murderer is on the loose?" said Victoria.

Hermione didn't say anything to that. They had run into her on the way to the third floor. She was trying to tell Victoria about Snape, but since Victoria already knew, Hermione only got herself drafted into coming along.

They were walking down a stone passageway. Snape had already found the invisible trap door, and had left a hanging rope, which they took down.

"Do you guys hear something?" said Ron. There was a faint clinking and rustling sound coming from up ahead.

"What do you think it is?" asked Neville.

"It's coming from that opening," said Victoria. There was light at the end of the passageway. As they reached it, they found themselves in a large, well-lit room. The ceiling was full of small shiny birds, gently fluttering around the room. Across the room was an exit. There were bits of wood littered around the floor, as if a door used to be there but had been blasted apart.

"Do you think they'll attack us if we try to cross?" asked Ron.

"Probably," said Harry. "They look harmless, but I suppose if they all swooped down at once..."

"I'll run first," said Neville and Harry at the same time. They looked at each other, and then nodded. Harry covered his face with his arms and sprinted as fast as he could across the room. He expected to feel beaks and claws attacking him, or something, but he and Neville both made it to the other side without problems.

"Looks clear!" said Neville. Ron, Hermione, and Victoria followed across the room. They too, were allowed passage from the birds.

They walked through the doorway. The only light in the room was coming from the bird-chamber, but as they took a few more steps in, it suddenly filled itself with light, revealing an amazing sight.

They were standing before a large chessboard, just behind the black pieces that were much larger than they were. Across the chamber, were the white pieces. Harry shivered slightly. The towering white pieces had no faces.

"So... what do we do?" asked Harry. "What kind of thing is this?"

"It's obvious, isn't it?" said Ron. "We have to play through."

"How do we do that?" asked Victoria. "Take their place?"

Ron paused for a moment. "I think so," he said. He walked over to a black knight and touched the knight's horse. Instantly the knight sprang to life. The horse pawed the ground and the knight turned his head to look down on Ron.

"Do we ... er... have to join you to get across?"

The black night nodded. Ron turned to the group.

Ron sat there, his brow furrowed in thought. After some time, he finally said, "Don't get offended... but none of you are that good at chess."

Hermione harrumphed, as if daring Ron to say that again, but Ron ignored her.

"It's true," said Victoria. She gave a small sigh, and said, "Tell us what to do."

Ron thought some more. Finally, he said, "Harry, you take the place of that bishop. Neville, you be that knight. Victoria, you can be the castle over here next to me. Hermione, you be the other one, next to Neville. I'll be this knight."

The chess pieces must have been listening, because as soon as Ron stopped talking all the mentioned pieces jumped to life, and walked off the board, leaving five empty squares. Everyone took their assigned spots.

They waited a moment. "White always plays first in chess," said Ron. Another moment passed. "There, look."

A white pawn had moved forward two squares.

Ron began directing the black pieces. Harry started shaking. In the real game, pieces were hurt when taken. What would happen if one of them was taken? What if they ended up losing?

"Neville," said Ron suddenly.

"What is it?"

"I - I don't know what will happen if you're taken." Ron shuddered. "But - but I really need you to be taken now. None of our other pieces have been taken, so I don't know... well, I just don't know."

"It's all right," said Neville. He held his head up. "If we need to get across, I'm willing to do it." He looked over at Victoria, and then back to Ron. "She needs to get across. If I need to be taken to do it, then that's the way it is."

Victoria looked shocked.

"No!" she said. "There's got to be another way! Ron, send some other piece, one that's not one of us!"

"I'm not sending a piece just anywhere. I need him to be taken." Ron gave another violent shudder. "Look, I don't want to do this either, but we have to!"

"You, pawn, move forward!"

Victoria screamed. She began to run forward.

"Don't!" said Neville. "Don't move from your square!"

Victoria stopped just in time, almost falling over.

"I'll be fine."

As Neville said this, the white queen began moving towards him, and Harry fought back the urge to look away. He had to know that his friend would be okay.

When the queen got there, she raised her hand and forcefully smashed Neville in the head, knocking him down. Victoria and Hermione both screamed, and the white queen picked up Neville and dragged him to one side. Ron was shuddering violently, and Harry felt like he wanted to throw up.

"I'm sorry," Harry heard Ron whisper.

There was a long pause after that.

"He's okay," said Victoria, shaking. "Look."

Everybody did so. Neville's chest was noticeably rising and falling. Thank God he was alive.

"He's just unconscious," said Hermione. "He'll be okay as soon as we get out of here."

"Then we better hurry," said Ron.

And Ron continued to direct. The white pieces seemed a lot less forgiving in their treatment of black pieces, than they were with Neville. It seemed that this thing was specifically made to be a great hindrance, but non-lethal.

"We're almost there," said Ron. "Let me think - let me think..."

Ron's eyes flashed for a moment. "I see now. It's the only way."

"What?" asked Victoria. "What is?"

"I've got to sacrifice myself. You can see it right, Harry? Once she takes me, you'll be free to make the last move."

Victoria whimpered.

"No!" said Hermione. "You can't do that. One was enough!"

"It has to be done!"

They stood there, waiting in silence. There really was no alternative. They had to win. Neville was already hurt. If they didn't get through, his sacrifice would have meant nothing, and he needed medical help. If he didn't get it... no, Ron had to do it, however much Harry wished it otherwise. He wished it could be him instead of Ron. But it wasn't. Harry felt like throwing up again.

Ron slowly began to move forward, and the white queen pounced.

Harry again didn't look away. Even if Neville turned out all right, Ron still deserved better. The white queen again raised her hand and struck, knocking Ron out and dragging him away.

Harry quickly moved three spaces to the left.

The white king took off his crown and threw it at Harry's feet. They had won. The chessmen parted and bowed, leaving the door clear.

With one last look at Ron and Neville, the three made their way through the door.

"What else could be here?" said Harry. "Maybe the teachers were all right... maybe it is protected and there was—"

"Don't say it!" said Victoria. "We know that he's been through here. He got through all this stuff. We need to do it too." She spoke softly, seemingly trying to convince herself as well.

"You know," said Hermione. "I never really thought you were all that nice." Harry looked at her. "You, Ron and Neville, I mean. But just having gone through that... you're great people."

Harry walked on silently. What should he say? After a few moments, he just nodded. Hermione wasn't that bad a person either. She didn't deserve all the things they had said to her.

"Here we are," said Victoria.

They were standing before another door. Harry pushed it open, wanting to go first. A horrifying sight met their eyes. A dragon, a real life dragon, was lying slumped to one side of the room, its huge frame taking up half the room. The door behind it, however, was unobstructed. The dragon's tail, which should have been blocking the door with the way it was laying, had been cut off, leaving the way clear.

"Merlin," said Victoria. "Snape must be terribly powerful to get past that."

"It's not dead," said Hermione. "Look at how its scales are still shining. It's just unconscious. We better hurry, before it wakes up."

They went through the next door. Instead of something horrible, it was just a logic puzzle, which Hermione solved. There was a table lined with potions, one bottle letting them pass through the black flames that were blocking the way forward, another letting them pass through the purple flames blocking the way behind them. Several others were there to confuse them.

In the bottle allowing them to pass, there was enough for Harry and Victoria to have a small swallow. Hermione took the other, so she could go get help.

"Good luck," she said, before turning away. "I'll be as fast as I can. I'm sure I can convince somebody to come help." She smiled. "Hang in there, Victoria."

She then took a swig of the potion, made a face, and ran through the purple flames, out of the room.

"I guess this is it," said Victoria. "Just us two left."

Harry nodded. He uncorked the bottle, and offered it to Victoria who shook her head. "You first."

Harry shrugged, and took the potion. Coldness leaked into his veins, and he grimaced.

"It's like drinking ice."

Victoria took the bottle and drank, and they both ran quickly through the flames. For a moment, Harry could see nothing but dark flames, but then he was clearly on the other side. There was already somebody there, waiting for them. But it wasn't Snape.

oOoOoOo

It was Professor Termon.

"No!" said Harry. "How could you be here?"

Victoria was far more shocked than Harry.

"You're alive!" she said. As the words left her mouth, she ran towards Professor Termon. But as soon as she got close, Professor Termon's hand collided with her head, knocking her aside.

"You stupid, stupid girl," said Professor Termon. Her voice was cold and hard, so unlike how she sounded the last time Harry had heard it. Was this really the same person?

Victoria whimpered slightly. "Professor Termon?"

"How can you be here," said Harry. "You're dead!"

Termon gave a cold, heavy laugh that sounded to Harry like what Snape's laughs must sound like.

"Obviously, I am not," she said.

"But - but we thought Snape killed you." Victoria was sitting on the floor, looking up at Termon.

Termon laughed again. "Snape? Kill _me_?" She threw her head back, laughing hard again. Was she crazy?

"No, no," she continued. "_I_ killed me. Alan Vicius was smart enough to suspect me of trying to steal one of the Philosopher Stones ever since Halloween."

Victoria's face contorted in horror at the realization. "It was you! You attacked Hogwarts at Halloween!"

Termon laughed again. "Yes, one of the cleverer things I've ever done, I thought. I knew that either chaos would ensue, or Dumbledore would fix everything. But either way, I'd be left alone to make a break for the stone. The only people I had to worry about were Severus, Alan, and Victor. Imagine my surprise when after I killed that infernal dog, I couldn't find where to go next? And then Severus had to show up!"

"Who's Victor?" asked Harry. She was after the stone, but Hermione was on her way to get help. If Harry could just keep Termon talking, things might still be okay.

"Professor Spinner, you twit, the other Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher!" She paused, and then raised her wand. "I've had enough of this."

Quicker than Harry could see, she conjured some rope and bound both Harry and Victoria.

As the bindings tightened, Harry realised that Termon was standing in front of a very large, ornate mirror. It had golden trim and stood on two clawed feet. There was an inscription carved on the top, but Harry couldn't make out what it said.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll be killing you just as soon as I figure out this mirror." Termon stuffed her wand into her robe, and peered closely into the reflection, as if studying herself for small blackheads. Victoria wasn't even trying to escape. She seemed to have resigned herself to the floor, bound up with rope, with no hope of escape. Harry was having none of that. The least he could do was keep Termon talking.

"That stupid, old codger," said Termon, in frustration. "How am I supposed to deal with this? I'm sure it was him who came up with this annoying little test. Master, can't you help me?"

What? Master? Who was she talking about? Was there somebody else in the room, invisible to Harry?

"What do you mean by 'Master?'" asked Harry.

"The most powerful wizard alive," said Termon. "The Dark Lord."

Harry gasped. "Voldemort? You're working for Voldemort?"

"Say his name, will you? I guess I'll just have to teach you a lesson in humility!" She pulled out her wand again, and started walking towards Harry.

"Leave him," said a voice. It was coming from Termon, but it wasn't her. This voice was masculine, and faint, and much more terrible.

"But, Master!"

"I said leave him... for now. Deal with the mirror first."

Termon turned around and went back to the mirror.

"How did you do it?" said Harry, still determined to buy time. "How did you fake your own death?"

Termon chuckled. "It was easy. I carried around a bottle of mislabeled Fire Draught. I gave it to you, in the hopes that you'd be grossly incorrect in your measurements, and blow yourself up. Unfortunately, Severus exaggerates how bad you are at Potions. The reaction was delayed, but no matter. I got you all out, and after the explosion, took a slight overdose of Draught of the Living Dead. And there you go. I made sure to modify this particular draught, so it'd have a delayed affect. This way, I'd appear to die of my—very painful I might add—burns. I was resurrected later, by another loyal follower."

It was working. She was forgetting her purpose and answering Harry's questions. If only Victoria would ask something, but she was still slumped on the floor.

"Professor Vicius said the stone isn't here," said Harry suddenly. "How do you know that this isn't all here for nothing, and there's nothing in that mirror?"

Termon paused. "Alan lied then. Or you're not telling me what he actually said. _Flamel's_ stone is not here. Paracelsus' though... his is here. In this mirror."

Harry was shocked. If there was another one... how could they have missed such a big piece of information? And where was Flamel's stone then? Was it safe? Or would it be targeted if this attempt failed?

"Why didn't you go after Flamel's then?" Harry blurted out.

"I already had this teaching position lined up. This one was closer. Flamel's was sent to France after I failed to take either stone from Gringotts. Flamel is in France now, in fact. I had to get him out of this castle. What better way than to send him an urgent notice that the Dark Lord had switched targets?"

"But what about Dumbledore? And Professor Vicius? Or even Snape? If they were all protecting the stone, how did you get them out of the way?" The questions were coming faster than Harry could consciously think them up.

"You ask too many questions," said Termon. "Trying to break my concentration? No matter. I'll indulge you this last time. Any more questions and I'll stun you to silence!

"As I said, Alan and Severus were on to me the whole time. Severus, I didn't worry about. He was fooled after my 'death.' Vicius wasn't so easy. He continued to keep tabs on me even after I died. He found out my death was fake after digging up my coffin several days after I was buried. So I waited a little while to strike." She paused, and sighed wistfully. "I killed his family this morning. Wife and two kids. Both girls. Lovely screams they made as they died... Anyway, he left the castle as soon as he heard. Dumbledore, I simply summoned for a hearing at the Wizengamot. Now remember what I said. One more question and you'll be going to sleep for a while. And I doubt you'll wake up."

Harry fought the urge to cry for help. Nobody would hear him down here.

"I see the stone," said Termon. "I'm giving it to you, my Lord. But how do I _get_ it?"

Harry wanted nothing more than to get the stone before Termon. If he could do that, he could help keep it safe.

"Use the boy," said that voice again. What was it?

""_Accio_!" shouted Termon, and Harry was flung forward, towards her. He landed to her side, right in front the mirror. Harry could smell something funny coming from her. Had it always been there?

Instead of seeing his normal reflection, he instead saw an unbound Harry Potter, smiling and holding a large, blood-red stone. The reflection-Harry then winked, and put the stone in his pocket—and as he did so, Harry felt the sudden weight of it in his clothing.

"Well?" she said. "What do you see?"

Harry had no idea what would be a believable lie, so he just said the first thing that came to his mind.

"My reflection."

"You've got to do better than that, Potter. Now tell me. What do you see?"

"Let me speak to him," said the voice. "Face-to-face."

Termon paused. "Are you sure, Master? You're very weak in your current state."

"I am strong enough—for this."

Termon sighed, put her hands on her scalp... and _took it off_. It was a wig, a large thick wig. Then Termon turned slowly.

Harry yelled in surprise.

On the other side of her head was a face, the most terrible face Harry had ever seen. It was chalk white, with glaring red eyes and slits for nostrils, like a snake. Looking at it, Harry felt like somebody was pushing several needles through the scar on his head.

"Harry Potter," it said. Harry tried to step back but ended up stumbling due to the rope still holding him.

"Undo Mr. Potter's bindings," it said. Termon turned around, took out her wand, and waved it. The ropes holding Harry instantly fell away, and Harry got back up to his feet.

"Do you see what I have become?" the face said. "Mere shadow and vapor. I have form only when I share another's body. Luckily, there have always been those willing to let me into their hearts and minds. Unicorn blood has strengthened me these past weeks. Termon has been staying in the Forbidden Forest to drink it for me... but once I have the Elixir of Life, I will be able to create a new body. Now... why don't you hand me that stone in your pocket?"

So he knew. Harry felt his legs become concrete, and he stumbled backward.

"Don't be a fool!" said the face. "Better save your own life and join me... or you'll meet the same end as your parents. They died begging for their lives."

"LIAR!" Harry said suddenly.

Termon was walking backwards at him, so that Voldemort could still see him. The face was smiling.

"How touching. I always value bravery. Yes, your parents were brave. I killed your father first, and he put up a courageous fight... but your mother needn't have died. She was trying to protect you... now give me the stone, unless you want her to have died in vain."

"NEVER!" said Harry. He wanted to make a break for it, but Victoria was still there, in a silent stupor.

"Very well," said Voldemort. "Termon... dispose of the girl."

"With pleasure."

Harry felt himself fill with fire. He couldn't let her die. He just couldn't. He had to do something.

Without thinking, Harry charged at Termon, knocking her over. As he touched her, Harry was overcome with severe pain in his scar, as if his head was splitting open.

Termon screamed, and writhed out from under Harry. The pain in his head lessened, but Termon's clothes had been burnt away in places, revealing angry red blisters on her skin.

"Kill her, KILL HER!" screamed Voldemort, but Termon got up slowly.

"It hurts, Master!" she said. "He hurt me somehow! It hurts so much, it hurts to move!"

Harry didn't let her try anything else, and threw himself upon her. Again, without thinking, he turned her over and grabbed her face.

She tried to get away, but Harry clung to her as hard as he could. The pain he was feeling was debilitating. He couldn't hear anything. He couldn't see anything. He was aware of terrible screams. Maybe they were his own, or perhaps Termon's. Maybe both.

And then there was just blackness.


	15. Year's End

Something gold was glittering right in front of Harry's face. It was really annoying, bobbing here and there. Harry tried to swat at it, but his arms were too heavy. Harry blinked.

When his eyes cleared, he was suddenly glad he couldn't swat at it. It was Dumbledore's glasses. "Good afternoon, Harry."

Harry stared at him, and then he remembered. "Sir! Victoria! And the stone! Quick, she's going to kill her! It was Termon. She's—"

"Calm yourself, dear boy. You are a little behind the times," said Dumbledore. "All your friends are alive and well, including young Miss Thompson."

"But the stone!"

"Professor Termon did not obtain it."

"Then who has it? Sir, I—"

"Harry, please relax. If you do not, I'm afraid Madam Pomfrey will have me thrown out."

Harry swallowed and looked around him. He was in the hospital wing, lying in a bed with white linen sheets. Next to him was a table piled high with what looked like half the candy shop.

"Tokens from your friends and admirers," said Dumbledore. "I do believe I caught a Mr. Dudley Dursley coming up here trying to sneak a few away, but I'm sure he felt he could just help himself, seeing as he's family."

Harry sighed. Dudley wasn't family. Violet was his only family.

"What happened down in the dungeons between you, Miss Victoria Thompson, and Professor Termon is a complete secret. So naturally, the whole school knows."

"How long have I been in here?"

"Three days. Mr. Ronald Weasley, Miss Granger, the aforementioned Miss Thompson, and Mr. Longbottom will all be very pleased to hear of your recovery. They, among others, have been extremely worried."

"But sir, the stone—"

"I see you are not to be distracted. Very well... the stone. Professor Termon did not manage to take it from you. I arrived in time to prevent that, although you were doing very well on your own, I must say. Protecting both the stone and Miss Thompson was no small feat.

"As I reached London, I realised that there was no meeting that day, and I immediately turned around and headed back. I arrived just in time to pull you off of Termon. I feared I might be too late."

"You nearly were, I couldn't have kept her off the stone much longer—"

"Not too late for the stone, lad—for you. The effort involved nearly killed you. For one terrible moment there, I was afraid it had. As for the stone, it has been destroyed."

"Destroyed?" Harry said. "But what about the other one? Parasalisis or whatever?"

Dumbledore chuckled. "Paracelsus' stone was what I was referring to. Nicolas' was not the one you saved. But to satisfy your curiosity, his has been destroyed too."

"But sir, won't they die?"

"Ah yes, they will eventually. Nicolas has enough Elixir stocked up to set his affairs in order, and then he and his wife will die, yes. Paracelsus has much more stocked up. He is planning to flee to one of his hideaway spots in quiet comfort for a few more years."

Dumbledore smiled at the look of amazement on Harry's face.

"To one as young as you, I'm sure it seems incredible, but to Nicolas and Perenelle, it really is like going to bed after a very, very long day. After all, to the well-organized mind, death is but the next great adventure. Even Paracelsus could see that.

"You know, the stone is really not such a wonderful thing. As much money and life as you could want! The two things most human beings would choose above all... the trouble is, humans do have a knack of choosing precisely those things that are worst for them."

"Sir?" said Harry. "Even if the stones are gone, Voldemort will try other ways of coming back, won't he? I mean, he hasn't gone, has he?"

"No, Harry, he has not. He is still out there somewhere, perhaps looking for another body to share... not being truly alive, he can not be killed. He left Termon to die; he shows just as little mercy to his followers as his enemies. Nevertheless, while you may only have delayed his return to power, it will merely take someone else who is prepared to fight what seems a losing battle next time. And if he is delayed again, and again, why, he may never return to power."

Harry nodded, but stopped quickly because it made his head hurt.

"Sir, there are some other things I'd like to know, if you can tell me..."

"Ask away, Harry. However, some things I will not be able to answer, if you'll forgive me for as much. I shall not, of course, lie."

"Well... Voldemort said that he only killed my mother because she tried to stop him from killing me. But why would he want to kill me in the first place?"

Dumbledore sighed very deeply.

"Alas, the first thing you ask me, I cannot tell you. Not today. Not now. You will know, one day... put it from your mind for now, Harry. When you are older—I know you hate this—when you are ready, you will know."

Harry knew it would do no good to argue.

"Why did Termon hurt when I touch her?"

"Your mother died to save you—you and your sister. If there is one thing Voldemort cannot understand, it is love. He didn't realize that love as powerful as your mother's for her children leaves its own mark. Not a scar, no visible sign... to have been loved so deeply, even though the person who loved us is gone, will give us some protection forever. It is in your very skin. Termon, full of hatred, greed, and ambition, sharing her soul with Voldemort, could not touch you for this reason. It was agony to touch a person marked by something so good."

Dumbledore now became very interested in a bird out on the windowsill, which gave Harry enough time to dry his eyes on the sheet.

When he found his voice again, Harry said, "Does that mean my sister is protected too?"

"Naturally," said Dumbledore. "Your mother loved both of you very deeply."

Another few sniffles, and Dumbledore once again became very interested in that bird.

"Professor," said Harry, finding his voice for the second time. "I was sent an Invisibility Cloak this Christmas. Do you know who sent it to me?"

"Ah... your father happened to leave it in my possession, and I thought you might like it." Dumbledore's eyes twinkled. "Useful things... your father used it mainly for sneaking off to the kitchens to steal food when he was here. Who knows what mischief your sister is using it for at this very moment."

Harry smiled. She would be doing something like that.

"And there's something else I want to know."

"Fire away."

"Professor Vicius... Termon said she... she killed his family that morning. Is it true?"

Dumbledore sighed. "Yes, I'm afraid it is. Naturally, Professor Vicius will not be teaching at Hogwarts next year. He will need some time to heal. It is a very terrible thing, to lose family, as I'm sure you understand."

Harry nodded, but he wasn't sure he did. He never knew his parents. But then a sudden, terrible though occurred to him. What if he lost Violet? That would be the most horrible thing that could happen. Harry pushed that thought out of his mind.

"Another thing..." said Harry. "That potion that Termon used against the school... what exactly was it, and why was it so clever? Termon seemed very proud of it."

"Ah, yes. Realignment Draught. It was a very good plan. Realignment Draught is an interesting thing. People with no sense of subtlety will tell you it simply makes a 'good' person 'bad' and a 'bad' person 'good' but this is not so. It is much more finicky than that. You, for example, what did you feel?"

Harry strained to remember. It was all sort of blurry.

"I remember being very angry. And proud. Like I was the best at everything and I should show it off."

Dumbledore nodded knowingly.

"Yes. But you see, that is not a good or evil trait. It is simply the opposite of how you normally feel. But the potion didn't affect your other feelings, did it? You still felt that your friends were your friends, and you didn't want to hurt them did you?"

"No, sir."

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled some more. "And if you remember, young Mr. Draco Malfoy was timidly holding up his hand, no doubt to nicely tell me how wrong I was in everything. His opinions didn't change, but his way of thinking did. So do you see now, what it does?"

Harry nodded.

"The Realignment Draught also gives off a faint odor, very distinct to those who know it. Professor Snape noticed it at once, as did Professor Vicius and Professor Spinner. Of course Termon knew of it. But other than those three, and myself and Nicolas, everybody was affected. I had to stay and make sure everything remained calm. Do you see now? In one fell swoop, it removed all possible opposition to Termon's plans, save five people, two of which were needed in the Great Hall to maintain order. I must say, even I think it was very clever. I only wish I was as clever, so I could have prevented the whole thing."

"And, sir? There's just one more thing."

"Just the one?"

"What was that mirror?"

"Ah, now that was one of _my_ clever ideas. That particular mirror is called The Mirror of Erised. And what it does is show nothing more or less than your heart's deepest desire. Only one such as you, who only wanted to _find_ the stone, but never use it, would obtain it. The rest would only see themselves drinking the Elixir of Life or making gold.

"Now, enough questions! I suggest you make a start on these sweets. Ah! Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans! I was unfortunate enough in my youth to come across a vomit flavoured one once. Many years later, I was convinced by somebody very close to me to try one again. It was a terrible experience. While I love these treats in theory, I can not bring myself to try another one."

Dumbledore smiled down at them, as if they were old friends. Once again Harry wondered if perhaps the old wizard was just a bit mad.

oOoOoOo

Madam Pomfrey, the nurse, was nice, but very strict.

"Just five minutes," said Harry.

"Absolutely not," said Madam Pomfrey.

"You let Dumbledore in."

"He is the Headmaster, not four separate students. They can't come in, you need rest."

"But I am resting—see, lying down and everything. Please, Madam Pomfrey?"

"Oh, very well. But only two at a time. You may have five minutes with each pair." And she let Ron and Victoria in.

Victoria almost flung herself at Harry. "Oh, Harry, I was so worried! It's all my fault, all of it!" She buried her head into Harry's bed.

"Don't be so hard on yourself," said Ron. "You couldn't have known she was crazy."

Victoria began to cry lightly. "But I _did_ almost get you all killed. I'm a terrible friend! I got too attached to somebody I didn't even know, just because she put on a friendly face! It could happen again, I could get you killed, Harry! I'm so sorry!"

Harry patted Victoria's head, trying to comfort her. He sometimes did that with his sister and she'd always feel better.

"It's okay, Victoria," said Harry. "Really, we're all okay. And it was because of you that we stopped Voldemort from getting the stone."

Ron hissed at the name. Harry was always forgetting that it was taboo.

"I can't believe he was behind all that stuff the whole time," he said. "You're a hero Victoria, for leading us all against him. If we hadn't all gone with you, who knows what would have happened.

Victoria, who had stopped crying, gave a small chuckle. "If I remember right, you weren't too enthusiastic."

Ron laughed at that, but didn't say anything.

"That's five minutes!" said Madam Pomfrey.

Victoria and Ron left, and Hermione and Neville came in. Like Victoria, Hermione almost flung herself at Harry.

"We were so worried! We were told you'd be okay. But still... it was a terrible wait."

"It's great that you're back with us, mate," said Neville.

"Thanks. It's good to be back."

They chatted a few minutes, and Madam Pomfrey ushered them all out again. It was amazing how up to speed they were. Dumbledore had told Victoria most of what he told Harry, and Victoria had told everybody else what really happened down in the dungeons. Maybe that was why the entire school knew the story.

oOoOoOo

Harry made his way to the end-of-year feast alone that night. Madam Pomfrey insisted on giving him one last check-up and had held him back, so when he arrived, the Great Hall was already full.

It was decked out in green and silver to celebrate Slytherin winning the House Cup. A huge banner showing the Slytherin serpent hung behind the High Table. When Harry entered the hall everything became quiet, but erupted into loud talking again before long. Harry ignored it and made his way to the Gryffindor table, sitting between Ron and Neville. Hermione sat on the other side of Neville. As far as Harry was concerned, Hermione was part of the group now. The others seemed to agree.

As soon as Harry sat down, Dumbledore arrived and made his way to the podium, killing off the remaining chatter.

"Another year gone!" he said. "And I must trouble you with an old man's wheezing waffle before we sink our teeth into our delicious feast. What a year it has been! Hopefully, your heads are all a little fuller than they were... you have the whole summer ahead to get them nice and empty before next year starts.

"Now, as I understand it, the House Cup needs awarding, and the points stand thus: in fourth place, Gryffindor, with three hundred and seventy-five points; in third, Ravenclaw, with four hundred and ten; Hufflepuff has four hundred and fifty-two points, and Slytherin, five hundred and twenty-six."

A roar of cheering erupted from the Slytherin table. Harry could see Draco Malfoy banging his goblet on the table, and Dudley, Harry could see, was laughing and pointing at the Gryffindors.

"Yes, well done, Slytherin," said Dumbledore. "However, recent events must be taken into account."

The Great Hall became still and quiet, the Slytherins' faces fell a little.

"I have a few last minute points to award. Let me see, yes... first, to Mr. Neville Longbottom..."

Neville turned very red as he heard his name called.

"... for bravery and an admirable willingness to protect others, I award Gryffindor house, fifty points."

The cheers easily dwarfed that of the Slytherins' earlier noise. Harry patted Neville on the back to congratulate him, but he seemed on the verge of fainting.

At last there was silence again.

"Second, to Mr. Ron Weasley, for the best played game of chess Hogwarts has seen in many years, I award fifty points."

Again, cheers could be heard that made Harry's ears hurt. Percy could be heard telling the other prefects, "My brother, you know! My youngest brother! Got past McGonagall's giant chess set!"

Gryffindors up and down the table were beside themselves. They were a hundred points up in one swing!

"Third, to Miss Hermione Granger, for the use of cool logic in the face of fire, I award Gryffindor house fifty points."

Hermione buried her face in her arms. Harry strongly suspected that she had burst into tears. As things became silent once again, everybody was on edge. Gryffindor was just one point away from winning the House Cup. If they could just get another point...

"Fourth, to Miss Victoria Thompson, for boundless loyalty and concern for others, I award Ravenclaw House, fifty points."

Harry and his friends cheered right along with the rest of Ravenclaw, making his voice hurt a bit. Ravenclaw was now third, behind Gryffindor. Harry continued to shout and clap until finally everything quieted down.

"Finally, to Mr. Harry Potter... for pure nerve and outstanding courage, I award Gryffindor house fifty points."

The noise was deafening. Those who could do the math knew that Gryffindor now had five hundred and seventy-five points, well ahead of Slytherin. Harry was surrounded by people clapping him on the back, trying to get handshakes, or giving out hugs in appreciation. Harry was swimming in adulation. Through the throngs of people, Harry got a small glimpse of a fat Dudley crushing his goblet with his hands. But the good will surrounding him protected him from any fear of old Dudley.

"Which means," said Dumbledore over the noise. "A change in scenery is required." Everybody stopped to watch Dumbledore, who clapped his hands. In an instant the Slytherin green and silver was replaced with Gryffindor red and gold; the huge serpent banner became a Gryffindor lion. Snape was shaking Professor McGonagall's hand with a horrible, forced smile.

It was the best evening of Harry's life.

oOoOoOo

After exam results came in, Harry, Ron and Neville were surprised to find that they had all passed with good marks. What wasn't a surprise was the quality of Victoria's and Hermione's marks, Hermione making second of all the first years, and Victoria fourth. Victoria's sister Valencia was the one who managed first, earning grudging acceptance from Hermione. Harry had openly hoped that Dudley wouldn't get high enough marks, but he had passed somehow.

And somehow, their wardrobes were empty, their trunks were packed, and notes were handed out to all students warning them not to use magic over the holidays. Hagrid was there to take them to the fleet of boats that sailed across the lake.

Victoria was a little more subdued than she was at Christmas with her goodbyes, but she still looked like she wanted to cry. She bid everyone farewell, and she and her sisters got a separate compartment to themselves again.

The trip back was fun. Hermione, Ron, Neville, and Harry all talked and laughed as the countryside rolled by. Harry's anxiety built as he drew closer, happy he would be seeing Violet again soon.

Finally, they were adorned in casual clothing, and they were at Platform nine and three-quarters. It took a very long time for them to get through the barrier. A guard made everybody go in twos and threes so as not to attract attention from the Muggles.

"You and your sister should come over for the summer," said Ron to Harry. "You all should. I'll tell Mum about it and I'll send you an owl."

"Thanks," said Harry. "I'll need something to look forward to."

Harry and Neville passed through the gateway together, followed by Ron and Hermione.

"There he is, Mum. Look!"

A small, brown-haired girl was excitedly bobbing up and down, next to her parents. Her mother had a similar face to Neville's.

"Dani!" said Neville, running up and giving the girl a hug. "How have you been?" He ruffled her nice, neatly parted hair, making it messy.

"Fine!" she squealed.

"Harry, this is my sister, Danielle, and my parents."

Harry looked up at Mrs. Longbottom. She looked an awful lot like Neville up close.

"Pleasure to meet you all," he said.

"Harry Potter," said Mr. Longbottom as he offered his hand, which Harry took. "Neville's said so much about you. It's good to finally meet you in person."

"This is Harry?" said Danielle. "Mum, can we have him over for dinner one day?"

Mrs. Longbottom smiled at her daughter. "Maybe one of these days," she said, "if he would like to."

"Boy!" came an unpleasant voice. It was Uncle Vernon. "Don't make me wait here. We're ready to go."

Harry turned around. There they were. The Dursleys. But Violet was nowhere in sight. Harry's heart sank. They didn't bring her.

"Is this your family, Harry?" asked Mr. Longbottom.

"In a matter of speaking," said Uncle Vernon.

"Well, goodbye, Harry," said Neville. "If I see Ron, Hermione or Victoria, I'll tell them goodbye for you too."

"Let's go already!" said Uncle Vernon, and he walked off.

"Thanks," said Harry. "I'll see you later."

* * *

A/N

And that's the end of year one. There's still one more chapter to be posted though, a chapter that has a few scenes in which Harry is not the viewpoint character, so we can see little glimpses of other people's lives during this year.

I've already started year two, but it will be a little while before I post it. But it will be posted eventually.


	16. Chapter Aza

How could he just leave her here? Violet was fuming internally. What kind of brother is he? He should come down and help her!

"You're rubbing too hard!" said Aunt Petunia. "You'll scratch the table! So help me, if I find one scratch, you'll be sorry!"

Violet growled. If Aunt Petunia heard she gave no indication. Violet was really going to let Harry have it when she got out of this.

oOoOoOo

Diagon Alley was fascinating. She finally had some money, and she was going to get Harry something for his birthday, but Hagrid kept a close eye on all three of them. It wasn't until they visited the Apothecary that Violet saw an opening. Purchasing a book with a pretty cover, Violet ran towards Hagrid. Hopefully, he wouldn't notice her being gone. And maybe Harry would like her gift.

oOoOoOo

Dudley boarded the train. He was finally here. Eagerly, he opened up a compartment and shoved his trunk out of the way.

A few more students entered the compartment and sat down. They all looked stupid, like the kind of people he'd beat up at his old school. He just wouldn't talk to them.

"Hey, what's your name?" said one, a girl about Dudley's age. "My name's Samantha, Samantha Clay."

"I don't care who _you_ are," said Dudley. Who did this girl think she was to be talking to him? Didn't she know he was Dudley Dursley?

"You don't have to be so rude."

Dudley just sat there. He'd have to find cool people to hang out with, people who'd listen to him. This was just like any other school, right? He'd just have to quickly show everyone he was the strongest, and everybody would fall in line, just like they always did.

oOoOoOo

Dudley walked up, and put the hat on his head. This stupid thing better give him the best house.

"Hmm," said a small voice. Dudley heard it like somebody was whispering in his ear. "What have we here? Dudley Dursley? Oh, you're related to Lily Evans."

Dudley snorted. It was true; he was related to that bum. But he was different, he was much better than that piece of trash.

"My, you have a warped sense of things don't you? Hmm, where should I put you that will help you the most? You have talent, but it's going to be difficult to get to, as troubled as you are."

Troubled? He wasn't troubled!

"Yes, yes," said the voice. "Hufflepuff might be good. Those friendly folk could certainly straighten you out."

Dudley snorted again. Hufflepuff was where that stupid girl who wouldn't shut up on the train went. Dudley wouldn't be caught dead with her.

"I see. Well, I suppose we could go the other way. You certainly have a lot of ambition, and you have a firm disregard for the rules. If not what will help you personally, then what will help your goals most is SLYTHERIN."

oOoOoOo

Violet was so glad she had an owl. She was able to send it off to the bookstore they visited at Diagon Alley, and get some reading material. She was currently engrossed in _The Muggleborn's Guide to the Magical World_. It was fascinating how different it was from the normal—no, the _Muggle_ world.

She paused, thoughtfully. She should write to Harry. His first week was almost over. Setting the book down, she picked up one of her new quills, took a piece of new parchment, and set to writing.

oOoOoOo

"You punched him?" said the Prefect, David Marshall.

"He was annoying me," said Dudley. "I had to teach him a lesson."

Quicker than Dudley could react to, Marshall pinned him against the wall. Dudley struggled, but it was no use.

"Now listen here, Mudlbood. I don't care how things were for you back at your stupid Muggle School. But here, we have rules, and we will behave like Wizards. If you have a problem that must be solved with violence, you use your wand, not your fist. Do you understand me?"

Dudley nodded quickly. He tried to stop himself but he was starting to cry.

"Good." The prefect let him down. This wasn't good. He couldn't beat _this_ person up. And he wasn't very good at curses yet, as much as he hated to admit it. What was he going to do?

oOoOoOo

"I can't believe it! You don't even know him!" said Violet.

"I've heard stories!"

"But you've never been around him. He's perfectly human. He's not about to ride out and save you from a dragon. Or anybody else for that matter."

Ginny blushed madly. "I can't help it. Besides... he's cute."

Violet laughed out loud.

"Well, you've got to act normal around him. I can't stand to see you turn silent and red, and watch him look confused. He probably pities you. You'll never get him like that."

"I know! Just give me some time."

"Okay. But if you don't improve, I'll make you."

oOoOoOo

"I'm just going to have to tell you more about him," she said. How was that supposed to help how pathetic she was?

"What do you mean?" asked Ginny.

"Oh... like how he once stumbled over my foot when getting up to put his plate away, and fell face first to the floor. Broke the plate too."

Ginny laughed. That was funny! "That sounds like something Ron would do!"

Violet groaned. "Don't say that! Harry isn't _that_ bad."

Ginny laughed again. "That's true."

"So anyway, let me tell you about the time..."

oOoOoOo

"This is so cool!" said Violet. Ginny was definitely one of the coolest people here. Only Percy might be just as cool. And Harry.

"I've been doing this since I was little," said Ginny. She took out a broom, and handed it to Violet.

"I'd like to think I'm a pretty good flyer. But we need to get you flying too. It's the least I can do after you helped me."

"Trust me, I was happy to do it." Dredging up all those funny memories of Harry and telling them to a good audience was great fun. Harry would probably be angry if he ever found out, but she could deal with it.

"So, what do I do with this?" asked Violet. "In the Muggle films, witches usually just do this..." Violet mounted the broom, and jumped. She was so surprised that she almost fell over when it left the ground unexpectedly. Ginny's shouts floated through the air behind her. It was amazing, the feeling of the wind blowing through her hair, the ground so far below. If only the broom would go faster.

oOoOoOo

"How dare you!" said Draco. He was furious. "Why did you embarrass me like that!"

Cepheus sighed. "You've failed to make nice with Potter. Father is already very disappointed. And you know what he told me and Alex."

"I don't need your help winning him over. He'll see eventually!" Why didn't he just butt out? Nobody wanted him there, nobody even liked him. Everything wrong in Draco's life was either his fault, or their stupid sister's. He could befriend that arrogant Potter himself!

"No. You've already lost him. What's important now is for you to at least not make yourself a hated enemy. If you bring such shame upon the Malfoys, Father will have your head."

"Let him," said Draco. It wouldn't be the first time.

oOoOoOo

She had done this. She had caused all of it. Harry was dying, and she couldn't do anything. She was useless.

Her ears were filled by screams, his and Termon's. How could she have let it happen? How could she not have seen? It was all her fault.

The flames over the exit suddenly petered out. Victoria's eyes opened wide. It was Dumbledore! Would he save him?

Running very quickly for such an old man, he made his way to Harry and Professor Termon and pulled Harry off.

Victoria heard the screams end, and a vaporous form ejected itself from the back of Termon's body. Was that...He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named? Victoria tried to back away, but she was still bound.

It was then that Dumbledore noticed her.

"My dear, are you all right?" His eyes were filled with worry, and they made her want to tell him everything, how it was all her fault.

Victoria nodded slowly... and then shook her head. No, she was NOT all right. She should be expelled.

"It's all my fault," Victoria whispered.

"What ever do you mean?" said Dumbledore.

Victoria tried not to cry, but she couldn't help it. She felt hot tears roll down her cheeks, and she wanted nothing more than to be able to wipe them away, but her arms were tied.

"It's all my fault," she repeated. "If it wasn't for me, we wouldn't be down here... Harry convinced everybody to come, just for me. But I led everybody into danger. I almost—"

Victoria paused, trying to stop her crying. But it was no use. "I almost killed them all."

Dumbledore nodded in understanding. "It's not your fault. Tell me, why did you want to come down here in the first place?"

Victoria sniffled. "I thought... I thought Professor Snape had killed Professor Termon. I thought he killed her for the stone, so I wanted to protect it to honour her memory... but I was wrong."

What was the use? Victoria just let herself cry. She was going to be expelled anyway. What did it matter? Her sisters would graduate with top marks, and she'd be left alone in the Muggle world to become a nobody... just some waitress at some pub, somewhere. And she deserved it.

"Now, now..." said Dumbledore. "It's not your fault. You did what you thought was right. You cared for Professor Termon, or at least, who you thought she was. Greater people than you have been fooled by Voldemort, and she was under his orders. It's nothing to be ashamed of."

Dumbledore waved his hand and unbound Victoria.

"Now, we need to get young Mr. Potter to Madame Pomfrey. On the way, you can tell me everything if you like. I guarantee you that you'll feel better if you let it all out. A young girl like you shouldn't be holding so much emotional baggage."

Victoria nodded.

"Just one thing, Professor," said Victoria.

"What is it, Miss Thompson?" He pulled out his wand, levitated Harry, and started walking.

"Please don't tell anybody about this. I don't want them to know that I'm so... that I'm so weak."

Dumbledore kept moving. "If that's how you feel," he said.

It was.

* * *

A/N:

I decided to go ahead and put this up early. It's short, so I didn't feel it was worth actually waiting for, especially since it's the last thing to be posted. Anyway, we are done with this year now. I hope you all have enjoyed it. As I said before, I've already started on Year Two, so don't worry. This story will continue.


End file.
